Par for the Concours

Finally, India gets its first world-class event for its heritage automobiles.

Pebble Beach. Goodwood. Villa d’Este. And Mumbai. If the organisers of the Cartier Travel With Style Concours have their way, the financial capital of India may just rank along with these world-renowned venues for showcasing the most beautiful, unique and rare automobiles ever built.

It’s about time we hosted an international event like this, as India has an incredible automotive heritage and you'll find many priceless vintage and classic cars with private collectors and royalty. And these have hardly been exposed to the world.

To be held between October 31 and November 2 at the Royal Western India Turf Club, Mumbai, the Cartier Travel With Style Concours will host 64 very, very special automobiles, many of them which have never been seen in any of the usual annual vintage/classic car rallies held in the major metros in the country. Examples? The 1948 Jaguar XK120, 1937 Delahaye with Figoni et Falaschi coachwork, 1937 Daimler DB18 Dual Cowl Sports Tourer, 1936 Daimler V12, not one, not two, but three 1931 Pierce Arrows... the list gets mind-boggling.

The cars will be classified in four categories and judged accordingly: Vintage Classics (1910-1941), Post-war Classics (1946-1962), Exotic (heavily customised and distinctive cars that were exclusive to Indian buyers) and Roadsters (convertibles from 1946 to 1962, highlighting Jaguars). The latter category, by the way, coincides with the launch of Cartier’s Roadster cologne and watch.

If the cars are so exotic, then the judges had better be special. Here are some of the confirmed names: Prince Michael of Kent, The Earl of March (Goodwood), Sir Anthony Bamford (JCB), Nick Mason (Pink Floyd), Imran Khan, Monica Belluci (er, Malena or Matrix II, if you please), Sophie Marceau (the Bond movie The World Is Not Enough) and more. Most of the judges are part of the concours circuits across the world.

All the participating cars have been selected by Manvendra Singh Barwani, India's most respected expert, restorer and author on classic cars, while the event has been conceived by conservationist and travel writer Mark Shand. The Cartier Travel With Style Concours will be a bi-annual event and the next one will be held in Delhi. Okay, so Pebble Beach, Goodwood, Villa d’Este, Mumbai and Delhi, then.