As Gojira, he may have devastated Tokyo. As Godzilla, he forged a bond between a young Singaporean man and his grandfather.
Now, that man lives in Australia and has nearly completed the transformation of his home there into a showcase of movie collectibles with the King of Monsters towering over all, largely in memory of his late grandfather.
Helmi Abdat, who works as an analyst in Melbourne, has turned sections of his two-story home into a Godzilla shrine with posters, toys, and other collectibles of the iconic monster in not just his home theatre, but toilets, and halls as well. Helmi, who is in his 30s, told Coconuts today that it’s just his way of showing how much he loves his late grandfather, who he grew up with bonding over the Japanese films.
“[M]y granddad was a really generous man, who would always surprise me with gifts and especially durian!” Helmi said today, as he was in the midst of planning to fill one of several rooms with more monster collectibles.
Though his grandfather passed away when Helmi was only 12, he has many fond memories of him, including the time he bought him his first video game console, a Nintendo clone called a Micro Genius, now proudly displayed in his decked-out gaming room along with other retro consoles.
Helmi arrived in Melbourne in 2009 to study before deciding to reside there permanently.
The Godzilla merch found in his home includes original film posters, mugs, statues, and even printed toilet paper, which he collected over the years during trips to Japan and on auction sites. His theatre also has six recliner seats and automated blinds installed on the windows.
The movie buff began his project six months ago but declined to divulge the amount of money he had spent. Although he did say that he was able to save money by building some of the props, such as his own cinema sign and the LED lighting, or buying some things second hand.
“I don’t have a dollar amount but I did manage to minimize cost [through] DIY, getting second-hand gear and reusing my old stuff as well,” he wrote in his reply. In a study room, Helmi showcased collectibles from other movie franchises like Alien vs. Predator, Terminator, and Iron Man.
Does his family back home in Singapore think he’s a weirdo?
“My family loves what I did with the cinema. As they are huge movie buffs too!” he said.
Surprisingly, not everything in the house is themed after pop-culture, yet. His master bedroom was designed minimally and “not as geeky,” according to Helmi, who is waiting for more Godzilla statues that he hopes could turn a room into a full-fledged museum in the future.
“The plan is to convert one of the bedrooms into a museum but one that’s still functional and you can sleep in too,” he added.
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