The Reverso of Belief

I have owned this Reverso for a very long time. My wife gave it to me when we got married, many moons ago, and at the time it was a huge thing for me because it was probably the most expensive watch I owned. That alone would have been enough to make it important. But a few years later, I began thinking about doing something with the reverse.

I had always been fascinated by the old watches associated with the Indian Maharajas, particularly the beautiful enamel work that appeared on some of the early Reversos. My own family has a long connection with India. My grandfather, Muljibhai Madhvani, came from Gujarat in western India and sailed to Uganda in 1908, when he was only fourteen years old. He eventually established a sugar business here and laid the foundations for what became our family’s business. So although Uganda is home, India and Gujarat have always been part of our family story. I wanted the back of my Reverso to carry something connected to that part of me, but also to something even more personal: my faith.

I asked Jaeger-LeCoultre in Le Sentier whether they would create an enamel portrait of Jalaram Bapa, the Hindu saint in whom I believe. Jalaram Bapa came from Virpur in Gujarat, the same part of India from which my grandfather came. His life was associated with service and particularly with feeding and sheltering people regardless of their class, creed or religion. That tradition of feeding people continues in Virpur today.

I had the old Maharaja watches in my mind when I made the request, and what I imagined was a traditional enamel portrait in that spirit. When the Reverso eventually returned, Jaeger-LeCoultre had created Jalaram Bapa using a combination of enamel and engraving rather than the enamel portrait I had imagined. This was around four decades ago, long before email, WhatsApp and photographs could travel from one side of the world to the other in a few seconds. Communicating exactly what you wanted between Uganda and Switzerland took considerably more patience. The longer I lived with it, the less I thought about what I had originally requested and the more I loved what had actually been made. Today, I cherish it passionately.

The watch continued to evolve with me as well. I have always loved Art Deco, and the original dial of the Reverso never quite felt Art Deco enough for my taste. My wife began the story when she gave it to me for our marriage. Later, I added something connected to my faith and to the part of India from which my family came. Then my own obsession with Art Deco found its way onto the other side. That is probably why, among so many unusual watches I have collected over the years, this one connects with me differently.