- The Vintage car show will put Gujarat on World Heritage Motoring Tourism Map: Madan Mohan
- Lukshmi Vila palace sojourning the Concours is the most impressive Raj-era palace and the largest private home built to date, covering over 500 acres of land, four times the size of Buckingham Palace.
- On January 5, 2023, 75 vintage cars will receive an extravagant flag-off at Lukshmi Vilas Palace and wheel to The Statue of Unity to commemorate 75 Years of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav
NE BUSINESS BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, DEC 22
If you thought that Rajasthan is the land of magnificent forts and palaces, you will certainly change that perception in the New Year after visiting the tenth edition of 21 Gun Salute Concours d’Elegance 2023, to be held next month in the royal Lukshmi Vilas Palace of Vadodara flaunting Gujarat’s rich long-lived history and culture in all its glory. Gujarat royalties led a opulent life with luxurious cars and roamed around the world. Indeed, it is Gujaratis’ pride and our neighbours’ envy.
The Concours is organised by the 21 Gun Salute Heritage & Cultural Trust in collaboration with the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, and with the strong support of Gujarat Tourism to boost Incredible India! campaign. Lukshmi Vila palace sojourning the Concours is the most impressive Raj-era palace and the largest private home built to date, covering over 500 acres of land, four times the size of Buckingham Palace.
Nearly 200 vintage cars will be displayed at the much awaited heritage motoring show, one of the most anticipated automobile event in Asia, will be held from January 6 to 8, 2023 at the Laxmi Vilas Palace of Vadodara, Madan Mohan, chairman and managing trustee of the 21 Gun Salute Heritage and Cultural Trust, told reporters here on Wednesday.
The spotlight of the event will be on the 1948 Bentley Mark VI Drophead Coupe, a single-design car specially made for Maharani Shanta Devi of Baroda and will be grandly exhibited at the show after it exited India in 1966, said Madan Mohan.
“The vintage beauty has roamed around the world and sat in garages adorned by famous collectors from America and Spain, but 21 Gun Salute successfully bought the Indian automobile honour and history back home in 2015,” Mohan said.
“Bringing back the spark and charm of the beauty was painstaking as its restoration required its parts, upholstery and even the shade of its original paint to be imported from London. Now, the Maharani car will bask in the glory it deserved for all these lost years,” he said.
Speaking with navjeevanexpress.co, Madan Mohan said, “Being an automotive enthusiast collector I am passionate about preserving India’s automotive heritage, and this show aims to help me achieving my goal of making India a World-Class Motoring Tourism Destination. This heritage motoring venture will narrate the untold legacy of motoring as well as India’s rich cultural heritage, adding a new dimension to Heritage Motoring in India. This will also boost the hospitality industry, the handicraft and handloom artisans to earn extra income.”
Yograjsinh Chavda, one of the Vintage car collectors, said, ”Due to a high number of princely states in Gujarat, especially Saurashtra, the princes there used to import rare cars directly. However, after 1962, those cars were exported back to European countries as vintage car collectors in those countries used to purchase them from royals here. Now, we have become aware of the vintage cars,” he said.
On 6th January, the Asia’s most anticipated and talked about automobile event will have more than 200 International and national vintage engines, automotive enthusiasts, dining, and entertainment inaugurating the charisma of the event. January 7 will be D-day for car enthusiasts and aficionados as the judgment of automotives by renowned international judges will take place. January 8, the last of the event will end with a bang as the Grand Award Ceremony and Best of Show & Category Awards will take place.
On January 5, 2023, 75 vintage cars will receive an extravagant flag-off at the historic Lukshmi Vilas Palace, Vadodara and wheel to The Statue of Unity to commemorate 75 Years of Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav.
Around 25 International cars, 120 veteran bikes and Maharaja cars are being exhibited in the Concours. Vintage and classic cars from USA, Switzerland, Belgium and France are also joining the competition. The panel of judges includes 35 international judges who are renowned motoring and fraternity experts and will travel from all over the world to judge as connoisseurs of cars, beauty, taste, and design. A car collector’s assemblage is incomplete without a Maharaja Car, making India the top-tier heritage motoring destination for collectors from around the world. The Maharajas and their magnificent motoring cars have a unique place in automotive history, attracting visitors worldwide.
Madan Mohan, a renowned figure within the global motoring fraternity and has been a lifelong car collector and enthusiast, never lost sight of his automotive fascination, which in one regard, became a reality in the year 2000, when he purchased his first-ever vintage car Dodge Victory 6, 1928 (previously owned by Raja Saheb of Khetri). Now, in 22 years, he owns 328 vintage cars, 43 jeeps, and 106 bikes along with clocks, typewriters, and other antiques.
