When doing construction work in the house, one important factor is reuse of existing items. Be it plumbing, electrical or material. A practice I am sure, I learnt from my dad. If there is work to be done, my dad would take out existing plumbing/electrical items and check before giving the go ahead to buy new material. In the recent years, he said most of them, new age workers looked down upon reuse of items. His refrain, 'why would I waste my money rebuying existing stuff, and then where will this buying new get us except just generating more waste'.
We as a culture in India were brought up to reuse and thereby minimize waste and inturn be environment friendly. It started from when children were born. New born children were dressed in already worn clothes, generally of the mother's or of a close family member. Books and clothes were handed down from one's elder siblings or cousins or friends. School uniforms, belt, shoes among other things were usually hand me downs. Stationery like crayons and colour pencils too. The geometry box is a classic example as were rafters in engineering. As one grew older, elder siblings or mom's sarees and brother's or dad's watches and shirts. Wearing granny's and mom's old silk sarees was a matter of pride. During marriage, family heirloom was important. Jewellery handed down was a treasure. Same with head gears and other adornments like watches and bracelets that boys wore. The dowry (not a supporter) would have antiques handed down. Jewellery as well as silver, brass and copper vessels as were customs of the family. Reuse of items was ingrained in our culture.
That has changed today. Parents buy everything new for their kids, every year. From books, uniforms, bags to stationery, tiffin boxes and water bottles. It is either not to make their kids feel bad, or for fear of themselves or their kids being mocked. In today's age, reusing items or using old ones are taken as a sign of penury or being miserly.
I've had my share of run ins. The furniture at home is a point. Our cupboards, book shelves, chests, tables and chairs are all old pieces. Made of teak and rosewood, they of course have seen better days. A little work, some polish and they shine. For me, the point that they are made from trees that lived before my time and hand crafted makes a personal connection. While there are some who admire the antique pieces I have sourced over the years, there are those who walk in and say, 'Oh, you don't have a built-in wardrobe. Why don't you give away the old cupboard and make built in bookshelves. All of us at home, parents and siblings love old wood and stone work. My parents appreciated and inculcated in us the beauty and skill of craftsmen gone by and it has rubbed in. Same is the case when interacting with plumbers/electricians and other workers. One of the common comments I hear is, 'Oh, you are trying to save on cost. You don't want to spend money.' They want to us to buy new material fresh out of a shop instead of using new material bought and left over from last time or removed and in good shape. Of course I know reuse means maybe shorter life span but am ok with the tradeoff if material is good. It is on very rare occasions that one finds workers selling you the old stuff instead of buying new, like the guy who came to rectify the fridge. He told us that newer fridges were flimsy and to hold on to the old one. When it broke down twice in three months in peak summer and laid waste to all the stored food we bought a new one but realized that the fridge repairman was right about what he said.
It is sad that many people throwaway old woodwork in exchange for plywood and laminated things. They throw away old handmade silver, brass and copper to buy new machine made ones. Old heirloom jewellery is melted to make new designs. We complain of the west being very materialistic and showy. The truth is we are on the way there, whereas they are doing the opposite.
During my days in Italy and US, I have found so many weekend and yard sales where all kind of things at home are put for sale. Many people buy them and either clean, polish and use or refurbish them to suit their taste. I found that besides furniture, electrical, electronics, toys and other home items, old crockery and jewellery was something that people bought and treasured. All this when Home Depot and Amazon were just a click away. At New York, we went into Christie's, the famous auction house to have a look. We saw beautiful old pieces, furniture, crockery and jewellery which had the craftsmen's identify in the form of person's name or company name as well as year of making. And many of these items were auctioned at high prices. In India, somehow, the craftsmens identity and year of make was never recorded as items were mostly commissioned. So, the antiquity of items was never recorded which is sad.
When newer cultures and lands are holding on to their treasures, and making it a habit, why are we throwing it all away. Why are we reluctant to reuse old beautiful pieces and ready to buy the newage machine cut ones. Same with preserving old houses. Trichy had old houses and huge bungalows. Cycling was a joy partly because I got to see the beautiful houses. Same was the case when I came to Coimbatore in 2000. Today, the number of old houses and bungalows has dwindled down to make way to dead pan flats. While flats are good in terms of conserving land usage and affordable housing, it is time we thought of preserving the architecture and thereby the personality of our towns and cities through its heritage homes and buildings. Otherwise, we will all start looking the same and loose our heritage and culture.
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