Have you heard of this bookstore-within-a-bookstore?

New books silver, old books gold.

Lately, the country’s best bars are trending with the concept of a bar-within-a-bar — a sandbox for bartenders to cater to the more discerning cocktail aficionados among their clientele. Bengaluru, a city of innovators, did it first — but with books, of course!

On 18 November 2024, the trio — The Bookworm’s Krishna Gowda; author Pradeep Sebastian and technologist VR Ferose — founded The Antiquarian Bookworm, a bookstore-within-a-bookstore dedicated to rare editions, fine books, and modern signed copies. It’s a pocket-sized, darkwood, air-conditioned, amber-lit room for the magpies among Bengaluru’s breed of bibliophiles.

No shelf control

Slowly — and it’s impossible to rush at The Bookworm anyway — meander through gaps between the floor-to-ceiling stacks of books, try to stay focused, go up a flight of stairs and slip into this space that feels and smells like a grandfather’s library with its leather-bound tomes. Immediately, you’ll notice behind a locked glass display: a copy of Songs From Prison signed by Gandhi and presented to Rabindranath Tagore; Who Were The Shudras? autographed by BR Ambedkar; an autographed copy of Hermann Hesse’s Siddhartha; Vivekananda’s Karma Yoga; as well as a copy of The Discovery of India signed by Jawaharlal Nehru on August 22, 1947 — seven days after the nation’s tryst with destiny! Browsing through each of the other open shelves reveals similar treasures.

“We wanted others to experience the pleasure that collecting gives,” says author Pradeep Sebastian about the trio’s collective motivation to create this bookstore-within-a-bookstore. They knew that they needed “something physical, an atmosphere that provides that experience” for bibliophiles. “Unless one sees these books, spends time with them, builds a physical connection,” collecting isn’t something one gets into “because it means investing a bit,” he adds. “But once one develops a certain focus, let’s say, then one begins to single-mindedly, with some devotion, begin to chase down these rare books.”

Pradeep has been on the hot pursuit for “letterpress books: what is called fine press or private press books” in his over 20 year journey of book collecting. Before he bubbles forth with excitement for these fine press books, he detours to first break down the rich catalogue of The Antiquarian Bookworm that is divided into four sections. First, a section dedicated to books related to India largely from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, “these never stay on the shelves,” he says. “Every time we manage to find a first edition of Nehru’s The Discovery of India, it’s bought within a few days,” echoes Krishna Gowda, the bookseller on the ground. “And anything else with nice colour plate illustrations or nice lithographic plates showing India are fast sellers too,” Krishna adds. There’s a section of signed limited editions from past and present authors. “The other two sections are unique to The Antiquarian Bookworm: letterpress books and books about books.”

Good for circulation

Pradeep’s knowledge of the last two sections is limitless. He begins with tracing the history of letterpress books. He speaks to the wave of “more or less handcrafted books” that emerged to counter “the poor paper quality and mediocre typography” brought about by the commercialisation of book publishing in the nineteenth century.

He points to the influence of legendary British textile designer and poet William Morris, “an avid collector of books from the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, who was displeased with the quality of books” and wanted to bring printing back to its glory days. He talked about the influence of Morris’ Kelmscott Press in the “revival of fine print-making and book-making” from making their own paper to creating their own proprietary typefaces” to hand-painting the borders, margins, and flourishes. “Morris and Kelmscott Press printed 54 books in eight years and [then] he completed his masterpiece called The Kelmscott Chaucer — the greatest achievement of the press,” he explains. “We’ve got a few single pages from this book, which were kept once a book’s binding had fallen apart. These are extremely valuable,” he declares. “A well-maintained copy of The Kelmscott Chaucer could sell for up to a million dollars, while a single page might retail for 2500 dollars,” he adds.

In this section, the booksellers boast of having work by Graily Hewitt, “one of the twentieth century’s great calligraphers” where the large, decorated letters on the pages weren’t printed but handpainted by Hewitt himself. “Anything by this calligraphist is highly sought after in collectors’ circles,” he informs us.

The final section: books on books “is different from other bookstores,” Pradeep explains. “These books never come to India, these are memoirs of book dealers and book collectors writing about bookshops, book collecting, and building their private collections. These books are about putting together a book collection, running their businesses, the kinds of books that they’ve bought and sold, and the fascinating customers along the way,” he tells us.

The Antiquarian Bookworm is an invitation to fall in love with books anew; not just as the vehicles that transport us to different worlds and experiences through text, but as objects that have their own beauty and mesmerising charm, crafted by accomplished artisans. This bookstore-within-a-bookstore promises that the adventures to be had between the covers of a book aren’t just conceptual, they can be corporeal too.

The details: The Antiquarian Bookworm, First Floor, The Bookworm 62, Church Street, call 9845076757. Weekdays, 10.30am-8.30pm & Weekends, 10.30am-9.30pm. Follow them here for updates.