Once upon a time, an Englishman who loved the old beauties, had come as a professor in IIT, Delhi and thus made this love communicable, as much as the beginning of the Statesman Vintage and Classic car rally.
A fascination that began in youth for Peter Moore, had no bounds when he saw many pre-World War vehicles in the Capital. The deep interest in old crocks got a big boost when C. R Irani, Chief Managing Director of The Statesman, lent his full support to him and thus began the saga of The Statesman Vintage and Classic Car Rally. That was more than 49 years ago when the first rally was held from Statesman House to Sohana Hill in Gurgaon.
Peter made people interested in these old beauties with which he tinkered at his house in Jor Bagh on Sundays. Many car owners began to make a beeline for his residence, pleasantly surprised that what they had hitherto regarded as disposable junk had an antique value. The rajas, maharajas and nawabs got wind of it and Peter was in great demand, making weekend visits to Jaipur, Alwar, Dholpur, Bharatpur, Gwalior, Patiala, Jind. The Thakurs of Wazirpura and the old Thikanas of Rajasthan came to see him and seek his help.
The first car rally was held in Delhi in 1964. The rally came to Kolkata in 1969. The rally is seen as the Mecca of all Vintage rallies in the Indian sub-continent and attract, between them, more than 250 to 300 motorcars, some nearly 100 years old. The rally is held on Sundays – the Kolkata event in January, and the Delhi one in February. Each year, the rally attracts thousands of enthusiasts in both cities, and many visitors from around the country and overseas. It is widely covered in local and international media, print and television.
The enthusiasm of people participating in the rally was seen to be believed. People from even outside Delhi came to see it, and all along the route were large crowds of curious villagers who couldn’t believe that “the Sahibs” were driving old forgotten cars, some at snail’s pace, in caps and period costume. Some really thought they had gone crazy to discard their new, shining vehicles for ancient “garhis” that sometimes needed a bullock-cart to pull them.
The most vintage stuff came from the erstwhile princely states and they naturally bagged most of the prizes at the grand prize-giving ceremony. Car sellers, garage owners and petrol pump license holders also shared in the honors, along with retired Army, Navy and Air Force officers as also business men and people from other walks of life.
The entire environment turns into a carnival. One can get a glimpse of some of the very rare, collector cars that are not only for display but also function fully in the rally.