"Time is precious; shouldn’t your watches be, too?" Ravi Sethi says this nearly at the end of our conversation, but it encapsulates everything that we spoke about over the last hour, perfectly. It’s Sethi’s motto, something he has chosen to collect watches by. “It’s very precious to have a good watch, and it actually means it’s not just time itself, but exudes value about your personality,” he explains.
Sethi, a Delhi-based American diplomat assigned to the American Embassy in a legal attaché capacity, has been collecting watches since 2005. His watchbox features nearly 20 timepieces, and in front of us lies only a part of it, the rest kept safely in his bank, back home in the US. Picking up timepieces that speak to him, Sethi says he is “someone who enjoys watches, loves the chase of finding them, and likes sharing my passion for watches with others.”
The nonpareil watch of his collection is a steel and gold Rolex Submariner Date Ref. 16613 ‘Sertie’ with a champagne dial, and diamond and blue sapphire hour markers, which Sethi has on his wrist. Other Rolexes in his collection are the GMT-Master II Ref. 116710LN, the green-dial Oyster Perpetual 41, the Submariner ‘Hulk’ Ref. 116610LV, the GMT-Master II ‘Coke’ Ref. 16710, and Cosmograph Daytona. There’s also a Panerai Submersible, Omega Seamaster in yellow gold and steel, IWC Schaffhausen Aquatimer, Oris Aquis Regulateur ‘Der Meistertaucher’ in titanium, Bell & Ross BR 05 Blue Steel 40mm, and a personalised Breitling, among others. “People talk about the Holy Trinity [Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe, and Vacheron Constantin], and they’re great, but the price points really shock me. Rolex, Omega, and Panerai make good watches. The Trinity gets a lot of attention and that overshadows these,” says Sethi. “I love this one,” he says, picking up the Omega Seamaster. “It was an impulsive buy, but it’s beautiful, and the Seamaster, a classic. Plus, that two tone!”
There’s definitely a bend towards the colour blue and steel bracelets in his collection, but more than that, Sethi says he loves hardy dive watches because he swims, snorkels, and dives quite often. “I don’t have to worry about the depth or leaks with most of my watches.” In this regard, the titanium Oris Aquis Regulateur ‘Der Meistertaucher’ comes handy with its comfortable integrated bracelet, and lightness. And even though the Aquis line has undergone a revamp this year, Sethi says he prefers the old design. “There’s something about this regular one that is so unique again. And I have to say I like Oris because they come out with some great limited editions, like the New York Harbor, Maldives, and Great Barrier Reef.”
Sethi’s love for watches developed because of his father, a watch aficionado who owned three pieces—a gold Rolex ‘President’ Day-Date, a square, two-tone ceramic Rado, and a gold Omega Constellation, which he wore on a custom gold bracelet that had been made in India. “Everybody idolises their father, and for me, too, my dad was my first hero. Born in the 1920s, he was always walking out the door spick and span, and had a certain Britishness, like having a nice wallet and nice watch. And he was always punctual,” recalls Sethi, who moved to the US with his family just as he turned four. “So, I think the way he looked, so put together, so polished, having a nice timepiece resonated with that. So, it started from there.” In 1999, when he was getting married, Sethi received a quartz TAG Heuer Kirium with an integrated bracelet, as a wedding present, and soon on started reading up on watches, including mechanical ones; in 2005 he picked up a Tissot PRS 516, a chronograph with a Valjoux movement. “In my line of work in the government, a lot of people were watch guys, and I met this gentleman who was on all watch forums—Timezone, WatchUSeek etc. He helped me, and that opened the floodgates.”
Sethi slowly graduated to trading watches online, interacting with the community, finding watches he really wanted, and through a process of trial and error, as is with most collectors, learnt how to navigate the world of collecting. “I’ve been through so many watches as an aficionado, and it’s not my side hustle. It’s just passion. And watch manufacturers, they know it because they come out with great new editions every year, and guys like me, we’re like addicts. We’ll go after it, right? And then when we have to free up our inventory, we will do the trading, get funds, and also make room in the watchbox. And stay married,” he jokes.
It was one such process of looking, finding, and waiting that landed Sethi his prized Rolex ‘Sertie’, which he had been looking for, for a couple of years. “It was really hard to get. I was waiting for the right price, right time, right condition, right buyer, and it finally came. It’s a pre-owned piece because Rolex doesn’t make them anymore. When you walk into a room, you’ll see a dime a dozen Rolexes, on top of that, Submariners, today. But very few Sertie dials. I don’t think I’ll ever get rid of it, it’s a factory Sertie,” says Sethi, using a term that describes the application of stones directly by the technicians of the watch brand, without any third-party involvement. Another story is of how he acquired his Rolex ‘Coke’ in 2008 after seeing an ad in the local California classifieds. The owner, who had recently separated from her husband, had received his watch in the divorce settlement. “She has been solicited by numerous jewellers but when she learned that I was going to personally wear it and had a passion for watches, she sold it to me. It is one of my favourite finds.”4
Rolex is definitely high on Sethi’s list of watches and brands he loves. “I don’t know if it’s because my dad had a Rolex. I loved the ‘Hulk’ before anybody else loved it. The green was darker, and certain shades of the dial looked black. So that struck me as unique. In fact, I hardly wear it now because it’s three times the retail price. It’s more than gold watches now, so I wear it sparingly.” Omegas also rank high on his list of favourite brands, because “again my dad had it; it definitely subconsciously rubbed off on me. In fact, I was given my father’s Constellation after he passed and I also have a Seamaster gifted to me by my mom, so I’ll never get rid of that one.”
Sethi says his love for watches has often helped him break the ice in his line of work. “I will often pick a watch based on who I am meeting that day. If somebody in the Indian government has an affinity for Rolexes, I’ll put on a Rolex. I actually know somebody who doesn’t like Panerai, and I’ll wear them on purpose because I have a relationship with them, and I’ll tease them about it,” he adds, laughing. “There is a person in the Indian Police Service who is a big watch aficionado. And I talk to him regularly, just not about work, but about watches—what do you have on today, what’d you get today? He’s a big Breguet, Rolex, and Omega fan, and when he recently picked up the James Bond Omega Seamaster Diver 300M, the No Time to Die watch, he sent me a picture. You can meet people just based on watches and that opens the door for relationships. You break the ice, but you also overcome differences.”
Watches have also helped him forge deep friendships, like with the gentleman from his agency who introduced him to watch forums and new brands. “Until his untimely death in 2009, whenever he picked up a watch, he took a photo, and the first person he would talk to was me. When he passed, his wife sent me his Breitling hat and watch winder, saying he would have appreciated someone like me having them. Watches are really just a segue into deeper connection, deeper relationships.”
Uniqueness and interesting stories associated with watches are the other factors that influence Sethi’s choice of timepieces. “I love green, and two of my Rolexes are beautiful greens. I heard somewhere that Hans Wilsdorf chose green as a colour for his company Rolex, because his wife’s favourite colour was green, which is a big deal. I like to buy things with some stories or history behind it, and not just buying it [for the sake of it].” It is this reason that the IWC Aquatimer finds place in his watch box, alongside a Bell & Ross. “IWC has been around for a long time and also has an American connect. I bought this watch maybe eight, nine years ago. I like the Big Pilot’s but IWC Aquatimer has a smaller bezel, and the glass is bigger, clearer look to it. Plus, the blue is amazing, and there are simple, clear markers. And I love Panerai for its unique crown guard, and the Bell & Ross for its shape—there’s nothing like that in my collection.”
This passion for watches has naturally rubbed off on the family. Sethi had got his wife a TAG Heuer Aquaracer as a push present when his son was born, and a Rolex Oyster Perpetual when his daughter was born. His son recently graduated from college, and was gifted a Panerai Due by Sethi. “My kids know I’m crazy about watches. In my free time, I’m not on Instagram, I’m scrolling Chrono24.”
Now looking at adding an Omega Bullhead and a Patek Philippe Aquanaut to his collection, Sethi firmly believes that patience is key with it comes to collecting. Beyond that, his long-term plans are to engage more in watch training, and going to Switzerland to see watch manufactures and shows. “The universe brought me individuals who lit that fire of watch collecting in me, and I developed a passion for watches. My dad planted the seed, but coming across different people provided food for that seed to grow. And it just bloomed. I’m not here to make money [off watches]. I enjoy wearing them and am looking to make room for the next wonderful piece that I come across.”
Images: Sanjay Ahlawat
Also Read :
Renowned Panerai expert Francesco Ferretti's watch collection
|
The curious case of Sandro Fratini's watch collection that he doesn't wear or sell
|
Young Old Love: A look at Dillon Bhatt's personal and impressive watch collection
More In People & Watches
Sign up for our newsletters to have the latest stories delivered to your inbox
