Harbandhu Mittal, a retired engineer residing in the Vasna area of Vadodara city, has a rather unique collection of 513 philatelic items on Mother Teresa. This collection includes stamps, first-day covers, miniature sheets, and full sheets. Apparently, Mittal is the only collector in India who has such an extensive philatelic collection on Mother Teresa. Recently, he even secured a place in the Limca Book of Records for this achievement.
Originally from Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh, Mittal settled in Vadodara over 30 years ago. In 1975, a philatelic exhibition was held in his hometown where he saw a diverse range of philatelic items on display and since then, he developed a passion for collecting philatelic items. However, due to his studies and work, he was unable to devote time to his hobby. But after his transfer to Vanakbori in 1995, he began collecting a large number of philatelic items on Mother Teresa. During the pandemic lockdown, he was able to devote more time to his hobby. So far, he has organized around nine group exhibitions and received awards for his collection. He also mentioned that his family shares the same passion for philately.
According to Harbandhu Mittal, after Gandhi, Mother Teresa is the second-most featured personality on stamps worldwide. Hence, he began a philatelic collection on Mother Teresa and currently holds a collection of 513 items from 89 countries, which includes 122 stamps, 184 miniature sheets, 68 first covers. Currently, he is also preparing to secure a place for himself in the Guinness Book of World Records.
Maintaining a philatelic collection is quite an interesting hobby. Mittal has purchased Mother Teresa coins, stamps, and other items from his friends as well as from other collectors. Furthermore, he personally designed a cover on Anti-Leprosy Day on January 30, 2009, and distributed 50 copies of the same among his friends. These covers included photos of Gandhi, Mother Teresa, and Einstein. Mittal chose these three dignitaries among many others in the world because of their extensive contribution in their respective fields. Mittal also has a collection of 10-rupee notes with Mother Teresa’s birth date, Punya Tidhi, Nobel Prize date.
