Old Trunk Boxes: What Happened to Storing Things Our Grandmother's Way?

Not too many years have passed since the time when our grandmothers, even mothers, used to insist string away things in old (sometimes even rusted) trunk boxes. 

The huge metal cases, often heavy even when empty, used to be stuffed with non-seasonal clothes, old books, and rags that Indian families never get rid of, amongst other things. 

So, what happened to them? 

When trunk boxes were equivalent to wardrobes

An era has gone since the days when people either didn't have or didn't have a large enough almirah to get rid of a family's storage woes. Those weren't the days of modular furniture showrooms in Ahmedabad, where they could buy themselves wardrobes. Kids used to store their toys, their books, etc. in trunks and keep them back there at the end of the day. Adults had their everyday clothes properly arranged in these huge boxes that were almost never moved from their places, owing to their heavyweight. 

When efficiency took a step forward

But, we no longer see those trunk boxes in a modern household. It's very difficult to imagine a family of three or four love in a small-ish 2 or 3 BHK rented apartment, with a trunk box full of trinkets and other items that have long become ancient history. We now have beautiful and equally efficient wardrobes, cabinets, and more made in solid wood, MDF, PLB, and so on. There are modular furniture showrooms in Ahmedabad with more furniture choices than one can begin to guess! They have brought in a new era of furniture, taken us away from our trunks, but in a good way. 

Our houses still carry the remnants of the past; who gets their home completely rid of all trunks! But, we don't use them as much as our previous generations did.