The Lake Club EIMG Concours d’Elegance 2024: A Date with Motoring Heritage

Images: Deepanjan Sarkar

After the success of the first two editions of The Lake Club EIMG Concours d’Elegance, Eastern India Motoring Group (EIMG) in collaboration with The Lake Club and ACE Commercial was back with the third edition of the Concours with 95 exotic vehicles which took part in this annual heritage event.

With the weather God smiling upon us, the temperature was rather pleasant making it an ideal Sunday; and with the majestic Rabindra Sarobar in the backdrop, clear blue sky above, the sprawling green lawn of the The Lake Club made for the perfect setting for a memorable date with motoring history and legacy.

The icing on the cake was the seven beautiful Rolls-Royces which adorned the club lawns like seven spectacular jewels. Keeping them company was a 100-plus-years old Stoewer C5, the oldest car of this year’s Concours and one of its kinds in India (and perhaps one of five extant in the world). This rare beauty was imported from Pomerania, then a part of Germany by Ishwar Chandra Chowdhury, a landed aristocrat from Malighati (now in West Midnapore).

Two mechanics and engineers brought the car in packing boxes. The parts were then assembled at the Kolkata Port before the car was taken to Malighati. On Ishwar Chandra’s death, his wife used to travel in this car. She was an iron lady and ably looked after the estate. The car has served four generations of Chowdhury family, namely Ishwar Chandra, Shantinath, Pratap and now Ananda who has maintained this car in pristine condition.

A blue 1948 Plymouth Special Deluxe, once the prized possession of legendary singer and composer Hemanta Mukhopadhyay and now owned by SK Lahiri, was another stunner on display. Mukhopadhyay bought this car after he became famous as a composer in the early 1950s. This car was later bought by the Lahiri family in the early 1970s and was thoroughly restored by its present owner. Fondly referred to as ‘Nilu’, the car is meticulously maintained and runs beautifully.

A red 1963 Triumph Spitfire which was once owned by Bollywood actor Jackie Shroff and now owned by Saikat Datta was another head turner. A Ford Anglia whose reference comes up in the writings of JK Rowling’s Harry Potter also evoked admiration from the visitors. Presently owned by Amritendu Roy, the vehicle was once owned by ace footballer Subhas Bhowmick.

A red coloured rare German Adler, from 1938, was another crowd puller. The car is owned by Gadai Chandra Dey. The car was buried after the owner of the vehicle heard in 1939 that it would be acquisitioned by the American Army for its officers serving USA during World War II. It was salvaged in 1965 and proved to be a worthy addition to the Concours.

A 1938 Rolls-Royce 20/25 owned by Avik Naha made its debut at the Concours. This black beauty had everyone drooling in admiration. This car is a real stunner and prized possession of its very passionate owner. Saurjya Pratim Mitra’s 1937 Ford 7W10 literally had the onlookers turn green with envy. This car has been brilliantly restored and proved to be a worthy entry in the Concours.

Four immaculately restored Rolls-Royces along with a 1931 Chevrolet belonging to the Shrivardhan Kanoria Collection were also exhibited in the Concours. While these beauties weren’t entered in the competition, they added a touch of elegance and aristocracy to the event.

Other noteworthy vehicles which took part in The Lake Club EIMG Concours d’Elegance were Avik Naha’s 1948 Buick Super 8, Siddharth Swarup’s 1947 Wolseley 14, Rajiv Ghosh’s 1932 Ford V8, Indrajit Sircar’s 1957 Wolseley 6/90, Sourajit Pal Choudhuri’s 1928 Ford Model A, Sarmistha Hazra’s 1965 Hillman Imp, Prithvi Nath Tagore’s 1958 Mercedes-Benz 180 A and Sarojesh Mukerjee’s 1959 Ford Zephyr.

The two-wheeler section had as many as 14 participants among which Terence Lobo’s 1940 Triumph 3HW, Chandan Basu Mallik’s 1950 Norton Dominator and Lt. Col. Nitin Shrestha’s 1937 Arial Red Hunter deserve special mention.

The heritage vehicles were judged on the basis of authenticity, restoration, maintenance, historical importance, and rarity by Shrivardhan Kanoria and his Concourz Restoration Team.

List of Winners:

Cars Built Upto 1930 – 1930 Plymouth Type 30U – Arijit Dutta

Cars Built From 1931 to 1940 – 1932 Ford V8 – Rajiv Ghosh

Cars Built From 1941 to 1950 – 1948 Plymouth Special Deluxe – SK Lahiri

Cars Built From 1951 to 1975 – 1958 Mercedes-Benz 180 A- Prithvi Nath Tagore

Vintage Two Door Cars – 1937 Opel Cabrio – Rajiv Ghosh

Classic Two Door Cars – 1947 MG TC – Himanshu Ajmera

Indian Heritage Cars – 1958 Standard Vanguard – Sarojesh Mukerjee

Two Wheelers – 1937 Arial Red Hunter – Lt. Col. Nitin Shrestha

Oldest Car Award – 1913 Stoewer – Ananda Chowdhury

Oldest Two Wheeler Award – 1923 Panther Sloper – Afzal Hossain

Preservation Award – 1947 Wolseley 14 – Siddharth Swarup

Restoration Award – 1937 Ford 7W10 – Saurjya Pratim Mitra

Resurrection Award – 1957 Wolseley 6/90 – Indrajit Sircar

Admirable Award - 1938 Rolls-Royce 25/30 – Avik Naha

Judge’s Choice Award - 1968 Fiat Delight – Rajiv Ghosh

Special Car Award – 1937 Rolls-Royce 25/30 – S.K. Karnani & ORS (HUF)

Touring Delight Award – 1925 Rolls-Royce 20HP – Ashok Kumar Bubna

Sporty Playboy Award – 1963 Triumph Spitfire – Saikat Dutta

Hot Ride Award – 1947 Arial – Harjit Singh Dhanjal

Epitome of Elegance – 1948 Buick Super 8 – Avik Naha

Best of Show – 1938 Rolls-Royce 25/30 – Avik Naha