“The love for cars is closely linked to always keeping the child in you alive. I recall playing inside my father’s Isotta that would be parked outside our fort in Kotwara,” says Raja Muzaffar Ali of Kotwara. Walking us through his automobile art exhibition, he well defines the junoon with which six avid vintage car collectors have got together to launch India’s first auction house that will be dedicated to the world of wheels Historic Auctions Private Ltd., India’s first specialist automobile and automotive fine arts auction house, founded by renowned collectors, connoisseurs and automotive historians of international repute came alive this week with a silent auction of collectable cars and Muzaffar Ali’s art at Camera Museo. The quaintness of the museum adds to the occasion.
Vintage cars and the Maharaja era are closely linked together. It were the Indian maharajas who imported for themselves the rarest of cars, fitting them with the finest of accessories and upholstery. Many a jenana cars that were often Rolls Royce had their windows covered with a curtain in soft velvet and embellished with gold. Meanwhile, the car for the Maharaja often had an LV picnic trunk tucked away for shikaars or a tiny cigar case to indulge the maharaja in his travels.
With HH Maharaja Gaj Singhji of Jodhpur inaugurating the show, the exhibition was a coming together of 15 paintings that had the signature stamp of Muzaffar’s near ethereal abstractions juxtaposed with the beauty of classic cars like the Minerva, Isotta Fraschini, the Stutz that he painted from the annals of his memory. On view were also 18 select, collectable cars with pre-sale estimates varying from 2.5 lakh to 1.8 crore including a 1959 Cadillac Sedan de Ville, a Toyota FJ40 Land Cruiser and a Fiat 500. With a 1981 model Mercedes Benz 200 getting auctioned in aid of the CKS Foundation. An army Mahindra & Mahindra CJ-3B army utility vehicle (jeep) project will also be auctioned, with a part of the proceeds going towards Army Veterans welfare groups.
Helmed by HH Maharaja Manvendra Singh Barwani, author, historian, recipient of the prestigious Pebble Beach Lorin Tryon Trophy in 2018 and legendary restorer who is globally acclaimed for his work in this world, the auction house has Diljeet Titus (Founder Titus Museum) as its advisor. “The collector car hobby is growing in India. First timer enthusiasts don’t have trustworthy and transparent access to sales and after-sales services, guidance and mentors. The Vintage and Classic Car hobby needs to move into an organized sector. With Historic Auctions, we hope to take the first steps towards that,” shares Titus. Forums like Pebble Beach, Cartier De Concourse etc Manvendra feels are important but “it’s equally important for Indian collectors to have a forum that celebrates the world of automobiles.”
The opening night saw veterans collectors like former Governor Punjab, V. P. Singh Badnore, Yuvraaj Lakshyaraaj Singh Mewer, Gul Panag, Ragini Sanghi, Madan Mohan, K. T. S. Tulsi grace the occasion along with Amitabh Kant, Ambassador of France to India Emmanuel Lenain, Maharaj Kumari Kalpana and Maharaj Kumar Ranjeet Sinh Wankaner, RK Chandni Kumari, and Shivani Rana Nepal amongst others.
