The Lake Club in Rabindra Sarovar turned into a automotive gallery with some of the city’s finest vintage cars on display at the fifth annual EIMG Concours d’Elegance.
Nearly 80 cars gathered to make the show a grand success with visitors seeing how vintage wheels hold grandeur, style and class when taken care.
Cars of German, British, American and Indian makes filled the foyer and the lawns, with each car presenting its own uniqueness in terms of looks, history or both.
One of the cars that turned heads was Avik Naha’s 1938 Rolls-Royce 25/30 Sport Saloon, which made its second appearance at the Concours as one of the most elegant and impeccably presented pre-War cars on the field. The black paint with slight orange accents made eyes linger.
The 1963 Jaguar E-Type Series 1, owned by Odisha-based collector Dharmaditya ‘Julia’ Patnaik, made its debut at this year’s Concours after an arduous, years-long resurrection.
Believed to have begun its life with the Gwalior family before passing through the Poonawallas and several other collectors, the car arrived at Shrivardhan Kanoria’s restoration unit in a severely damaged state, having once been broken into three pieces after a major accident.
With no reference points and every stage presenting new complications, the restoration became a test of perseverance, but the result was a historically significant, beautifully rebuilt E-Type that drew all eyes toward it.
Krish Ajmera’s 1934 Rolls-Royce 20/25 Limousine was awarded the Shashi Kanoria Memorial - Best of Show award. The award celebrates one of Kolkata’s most revered auto restorers, the late Shashi Kanoria.
Speaking about the event, EIMG president Shrivardhan Kanoria said “The EIMG Concours has grown into a benchmark event because we refuse to compromise on standards. Every car is handpicked for authenticity, provenance and quality of restoration. When it came to judging the Best of Show, Krish Ajmera’s 1934 Rolls-Royce 20/25 stood out for its exceptional restoration, flawless maintenance over the past year and the sheer integrity of the car. It scored the highest on every parameter and any seasoned judge would have arrived at the same conclusion. The trophies were awarded purely on merit and the field this year was one of the strongest yet.”
MG TC is an iconic car, and when you have two of them side by side in two very distinct pastel shades, it makes for the perfect frame. The sky blue 1948 MG TC belonging to Rupak Ghosh flanked Himanshu Ajmera’s 1947 MG TC.
Among the category champions, Surendra Kumar Dugar’s 1928 Essex Super 6 topped the pre-1930 class, while the 1937 Ford 7W10 of Saurjya Pratim Mitra led the vintage two-door category. The post-War honours went to Sarojesh Mukerjee’s 1948 Rover 75 in the 1941-1950 class and Prithvi Nath Tagore’s 1958 Mercedes-Benz 180 A in the 1951–1975 segment.
The classic two-door category was won by Rupak Ghosh with his 1948 MG TC, and the Indian heritage section was dominated by Mukerjee’s 1958 Standard Vanguard.
Among the two-wheelers, the 1952 BSA B31 of Mubaraq Maseeh emerged on top. The overall second and third places were awarded to Azam Monem’s impeccably maintained 1948 Bentley Mk VI and Tagore’s elegant 1958 Mercedes-Benz 180 A respectively, rounding off a strong field of standout restorations.
