Mumbai has traditionally been a happy hunting ground for old comics but, over the last two years, they have virtually disappeared from the pavements of Fort and King's Circle.

During the rare occasions they appear, booksellers have a field day and laugh all the way to the bank.

I was, therefore, not completely surprised when I got a call from one of them telling me that he had a stock of old Phantom comics from the mid-1960s. When he quoted the price, I literally fell off my chair. “They are yours for Rs 800 each. The seller is actually being generous,” he added for good measure.

Though I see myself as a serious collector of comics, this was way over the top. My thoughts went to my loyal vendor in King's Circle who has, over the years, sold me comics galore for throwaway prices. It was barely some months ago that I had picked up some for Rs 20 apiece.

Wake up call

For some strange reason, I was beginning to feel guilty. Was my vendor being naïve in selling me comics at rock-bottom levels when other booksellers were making the most of a scarce scenario?

I called him up to give the update on what was being quoted for the old Phantom comics.

“This is perhaps what you should be doing too in the future. You will find a queue of buyers even though I cannot afford paying so much,” I said.

He heard me out and laughed heartily when I was done.

“Do you actually think I am not aware of these ridiculous prices? I would much rather deal with passionate readers than rich people who just throw their money around,” he said.

It was also his view that while it was preposterous to sell a prized book at a discount, it was equally criminal to charge an unrealistic premium.

Customer satisfaction

“Both the buyer and seller must be content by the end of the day. And if I can make a reasonable profit, what more do I need?” he asked.

All this coming from a man who had left Tirunelveli over two decades ago to make a living in this city of dreams. He did not have to study in any fancy management school to understand what customer satisfaction meant.

His lessons came on his trusty bicycle which continues to ferry him into every nook and cranny of Mumbai in his quest for old books and comics.

There are clients who are crazy about PG Wodehouse and Frank Richards.

Others would give their right arm for an Agatha Christie or Erle Stanley Gardner. Each of us owes it to him for building our prized collection of books and comics.

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