Photo: KAMARUL ARIFFIN/TheStar
If not for his deep passion for watches, Bahman Tagharrobi would probably have made it big in the world of archaeology instead of becoming the lead watchmaker at Jacob & Co.
Fortunately, his unwavering devotion to watchmaking led him to an apprenticeship at Chronoswiss in Munich, Germany.
“From a very young age, I have always been interested in working with my hands.
“And watches have been a prominent part of my family, especially for my grandfather and father who are keen watch enthusiasts.
“As I grew older, I read a lot about watches and was very interested in the history of watchmaking.
“That’s when I decided to become a watchmaker,” says Tagharrobi, who jumped straight into the industry with an apprenticeship and began his journey into watchmaking.
The Opera Godfather is Jacob & Co’s tribute to the movie “The Godfather”. It plays the film’s main theme by Nino Rota.
“My interest in creative manual work grew.
“Being creative not only means designing, but also being able to build something.
“You can give me a piece of metal and I can turn it into something that looks like a watch or mechanism.
“That was the most fascinating thing for me to learn − to be able to work with different materials.
“As an apprentice, you work with materials like brass and alloys, and you learn how to cut and shape it,” shares Tagharrobi.
His main focus has always been on traditional watchmaking and craftsmanship, with a keen focus on quality.
It wasn’t long before he joined the Jacob & Co team, in 2017.
In his current role, he is involved in product development and representing the brand on the technical front, developing training material and educating the internal and external community about the brand’s unique creations.
Tagharrobi says understanding that watchmaking has hundreds of years of history is crucial. — KAMARUL ARIFFIN/TheStar
Technical brilliance
Along the way, Jacob & Co has partnered with the best of the best, including celebrities, movies, supercar maker Bugatti and legendary footballer Lionel Messi.
“Celebrities are part of our DNA in different aspects. They are our clients, our supporters and quite often, also our inspiration.
“They are proof of our consistency in fulfilling dreams.
“They are living the lives that many can only dream of and in these dreams, Jacob & Co is clearly visible,” says Tagharrobi, who has been in the watchmaking industry for more than two decades.
One such watch is the Opera Godfather, a tribute piece and a music playing timepiece.
The 49mm case contains visual, symbolic and graphic elements directly taken from the movie The Godfather.
A violin-shaped crank and a piano are references to the ubiquitous Nino Rota soundtrack, the main theme the music box plays on demand.
The 654-component Opera Godfather movement is built on top of a rotating base.
It tells time with an off-centred rotating dial and features a flying, high speed, triple-axis tourbillon.
According to Tagharrobi, the Opera Godfather was a particularly challenging watch to develop in every aspect.
“It’s an absolutely unique movement with an unseen animation merged with a case that in itself, is a masterpiece in engineering.
“Making this watch work properly and inventing an attractive look for it was a tremendous challenge,” he says.
Focus on quality
Every watch brand wants to create something unique, something that has never been done before.
“Understanding that watchmaking has hundreds of years of history is crucial,” says Tagharrobi.
“One can have many creative ideas but it needs to be translated into a high-performing timepiece.
“That is my goal – to focus and elevate the quality of our timepieces.
“I always fall back on traditional watchmaking, where using one’s skills is important.
“There are some things that only the human hand can do, although we have fewer people now who like to take up watchmaking (as a career) these days,” says Tagharrobi.
Yet, despite the throwaway culture that we live in today, he is confident that intricate watchmaking and craftsmanship work will remain in demand.
“For instance, the Astronomia looks very technical, yet some of its parts are hand-finished.
“One does not need to do that, but we see ourselves as a true watchmaking brand.
“The movement and concept took two years, then another year to just make the baguette version.
“This is why I want to include in our timepieces, the traditional part of watchmaking.
“High quality objects made by highly skilled craftsmen will not go out of fashion,” Tagharrobi concludes.
