Tamilnadu Tourism: GD Naidu Museum, Coimbatore

Saturday, October 17, 2015

GD Naidu Museum, Coimbatore

GD Naidu Museum, Coimbatore

GD Naidu Museum displays the life’s work of G D Naidu. He was also known as the Edison of India. He is credited with developing India’s first indigenous motor. The Museum showcases engineering products and other interesting curious items. Many of them were invented by GD Naidu himself. His collection of razors, electric shavers, gas lighters and photo flashes are lined up at the museum. A variety of pens, cameras, postcards and binoculars fill another side. Working models, drawings and charts give us details and also let us practically examine them.

The late Thiru G D Naidu was a born technocrat. He was a legend in his own life time. He had made invaluable contributions to technical, electronics, mechanical and agricultural sectors. He had also established an industrial exhibition which is worth a visit.

G.D.Naidu (1893 – 1974) was an eminent inventor and industrialist from Coimbatore, India. What’s interesting about this inventor is he never studied more than the primary level. In fact, even at a young age, he hated the system so much that he threw mud in the face of his teachers (Twice. Back then, there were no slates but one needed to write using fingers on sand). So, naturally he was sent out of school and perhaps that should have been a very happy incident for our young G.D.Naidu. It seems he was quite mischievous during his early years and he is even believed to have lit a whole stack of hay which was kept over a cart, just for fun.

The G.D.Naidu museum and industrial exhibition in Coimbatore contains an impressive collection of various electrical/electronic/ scientific devices and gadgets that has been in existence since very early years to the recent times. In fact, one visit to this museum would make you familiar with the different types of film cameras, projection TV’s, ball point pens, floppy disks, calculators, type writers, PA systems, printers, and many more devices that were used right from 1930’s/40’s till today.

In certain sections of this museum, the lights would go on automatically as you walk near that part of the exhibits and then switch off automatically when you go away from them.

G.D.Naidu was an avid photographer and photography was his hobby and passion. If you visit his museum, you can see the photos of a number of dignitaries who have visited the museum (A.B.Vajpayee, Indira Gandhi, etc). In fact, he was personally invited to the funeral procession of King George V at London and he filmed it too.

In 1940, a Phonograph was assembled and made by G.D.Naidu himself with some help from an American firm and his own UMS. By the way, a phonograph is a device that can record and playback sound, originally invented by Edison. Perhaps that’s why he was called as the Edison of India.