Many are happy to collect stamps, coins or key rings – but not this stationery-crazy teenager.
Tushar Lakhanpal, 15, from New Delhi, India, claims to own more than 14,000 pencils in different shapes and sizes from 40 countries around the world.
Included in his collection, which he believes could be world record breaking, is a gold-plated implement and two pencils, stored in an ornate box, thought to have been owned and used by Queen Elizabeth II.
‘My parents bought me this set of two pencils for around £400 – the British Queen has used these pencils,’ Tushar said.
‘I also have scented pencils, pencils with interesting caps, pencils made of raw wood and hand-made ones.’
The biggest pencil in his collection is 8ft 3in long and 29cm wide, while the smallest pencil in his possession is just 4cm long.
Tushar has already made it to the Indian Limca Book of Records and is now eyeing to break into the Guinness Book of Records.
‘The record for largest collection of pencils belongs to Emilio Arenas from Uruguay. He has around 14,000 pencils. I think I already have a bigger collection than him and I will soon get the Guinness record.’
Mr Arenas was recorded as having 14,552 pencils from 60 countries in August 2011. Significantly, he started collecting pencils around 60 years before Tushar in 1956.
Tushar spends hours on the internet looking for the best and the rarest kinds of pencils, and enlists his family to help him acquire the more expensive ones.
He started collecting pencils at the age of four and his father, Ashish Lakhanpal, a commercial pilot, helped nurture his passion.
‘He would always buy me pencils. I loved the feeling of buying new pencils. So whenever I would be travelling with my dad, I would buy pencils,’ Tushar said.
‘I have got pencils from everywhere. Now that my relatives also know that I am collecting pencils, they send me pencils from wherever they are.’
