Ahmedabad: Today, the curtains go up on the sixth GVCCC Aman Akash Heritage Car Show organised by the Gujarat Vintage and Classic Car Club near Malav Talav. On display are as many as 125 rare cars and motorcycles, all vintage beauties that are still turning heads with their unmissable character and class. The show will be formally inaugurated by Maharaja Manvendra Singhji of Barwani. Among them are the 1950 MG YT, or the famous Lal Pari, India’s first vintage car to complete a remarkable 13,500 km journey across 14 countries; a 1956 Chevrolet Bel Air, which has been in the same family for three generations; and a 1956 Dodge Suburban, the car of Ahmedabad’s first police commissioner.
Subodh Nath, founder and president of GVCCC, said, “These vehicles represent the foundation of modern transportation, and we aim to celebrate and preserve them for future generations.”
A 1942 Willys MB with Bantam trailer, which Padmarajsinhji Jadeja of Dhrol now passed on to his son AnirudhSinhji, tells a tale. “It has been with us for the past eight years,” says Padmarajsinhji, whose latest acquisition is a 1956 Dodge Suburban Station Wagon, currently under restoration at the Supercar Club Garage in Thane. “Restoring a car to its past glory takes time, money, patience, and perfection. One may have to import parts.” The Jadejas are also displaying a 1972 Jeep FC 160.
For those interested in wartime history, there is a 1941 Willys MB Slat Grill owned by Kapil Ahir and lovingly restored by Faisal Khan, the younger brother of the present Nawab of Sachin. Around seven years ago, he received news that this particular vehicle was lying in neglect in Madhya Pradesh. “We got it to Surat for restoration,” he said, excitedly explaining its features like the winch, the manual windshield wipers, headlamps, and the space for an anti-aircraft gun between the front and back seats. It took them seven long years to restore this World War II beauty, a model which, according to Khan, was instrumental in the US winning the war.
Karni Singhji Narendra Singhji of Idar is showcasing a 1948 Pontiac Silverstreak Torpedo, named so because of its tapering tail, like a torpedo’s. “There are only about eight or 10 such cars in the entire country, and this one is the only one in Gujarat,” said Karni Singhji, a fifth-generation car enthusiast. “We call ourselves heritage conservationists,” he said, adding that once their palace garage had 120 cars besides horse carriages. “Today, we have about 20 — Cadillacs, Buicks, Mercedes, and German makes. We entered this car because of its rarity.”
Chandan Nath, ad whiz and the 13th Mahant of Maneknathji’s Gaadi, proudly showcasing a 1964 Volkswagen Beetle LHD 1300, narrated how the car ‘revealed’ its actual colour during restoration. “I didn’t want this Beetle to be red or yellow. The colour that you see is what the car rolled out of the factory floor with,” he said. Getting the same shade, however, wasn’t easy. “We were struggling for a month, and dismantling the windshield revealed its original colour. We believe the car itself wanted to tell us this,” said Nath. “We went into the history of Volkswagen to check what shade it was.” Not azure, not turquoise, it was Caribbean Green. “We had the paint calibrated to match this exact shade,” he said.
Nath called the show a movement. “It is a reflection of what we believe is the heritage of our country,” he said.
The famous Lal Pari is there too, showcased by Daman Thakore and his father, their memories still fresh from their iconic 14-country sojourn in their equally iconic, and now much-decorated, 1950 MG YT. Daman wanted the family’s journey in Lal Pari to represent modern India. “How do you do that? We got a sterling silver hood ornament of Sardar Patel made for the car,” he said. Daman may be planning another road adventure next year.
The late collector and photographer Sanat Shodhan’s 1959 Chevrolet Impala Town and Country is now in the hands of his grandson, Dev. “My grandfather brought it in 1968 and maintained it for 67 years. It was a $2,500 car, and last I checked, one in excellent condition costs $368,000 now.”
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