Maharajas go weak at the knees for a Roller. Jaychamarajendra Wadiyar, the 25th and last maharaja of Mysore, used to buy them in multiples, typically half a dozen at a time – it became known as ‘doing a Mysore’. In the peak buying years, between 1908 and 1947, some 900 Rolls-Royces made their way to from the factories in Derby and Crewe.
With around 230 maharajas over that time, that averages out at four per prince. After independence, enthusiasts would try to winkle these beautiful old cars out of India, sometimes dismantling them and hiding them in tea chests. But the government put a ban on the vehicles leaving the country, and there are many still in situ today.
As India grows richer, so too does the appreciation of the of not just old Rolls-Royces but of all the marques collected by glamorous princes, playboys and, nowadays, industrialists. And so, it was decided that a show be held to celebrate India’s automotive heritage. In February, along with Prince Michael of and Jodie Kidd, I hot-footed it over to Udaipur, that white marble jewel of a city on the banks of Lake Pichola, for the inaugural Oberoi Concours d’Elegance, a weekend of cars, banquets and parties coinciding with the 90th anniversary of one of India’s grandest hotelier families.
And where better to host it than at The Oberoi Udaivilas, an extraordinary palace that PRS ‘Biki’ Oberoi built in 30 acres along the lake in 1993. No expense was spared in its creation: hundreds of artisans applied th.
