Stories off the beaten path: Ahmedabad Goes old School

Amdavad recently kicked off its first vintage car rally, and to this blogger, it was a resounding success. Strong words you say?

Let me paint you a picture. The Amdavadi is a creature that wakes up at 9, rolls out of bed by 9:30 and only towards late noon, finally meanders to work. And I am not talking about just the well to do businessmen here, I’m talking the daily wager, the 9 to 5er, all of them!

Now given this scenario, imagine my surprise when I reach Law Gardens at 7:30 am and find the place teeming with people. And not just quirky old parsi gentlemen with their 1932 Hudson Essex, or photographers with greasy hair or bald bloggers like myself, but people of literally every shape, size, and age.

Law garden this Sunday was a veritable smorgasbord of color, creed, circa and speed. From the Morris Minor Circa 1931 to the Chevrolet Impala Circa 1959 and 1965 to our very own Rani of the Road – the ambassador law garden came alive with automobiles that made a gearhead like me gasp for breathe. From pimp pink colored Caddy’s to flaming orange Mustangs ,Amdavad came out loud and proud with its love for the beauty and grace of these powerful machines.

While the sheer beauty of these vehicles where enough to leave the best among us , including yours truly stunned and silent with the sheer beauty of it all, what made this occasion truly memorable was the people. 9 year old boys milled around 1947 Buicks , knowing details like the year and make, some of the more adventurous ones even getting into the car and with surprising ease showed their knowledge of working ancient gears with stick shifts.

Old men with jaunty little solar topis polished already gleaming bonnets to a shine so fine you could see your face in it. For a few seconds, faces lined with age and a life gone by transform into animated glowing palettes of expression as conversations veer to V8 engines and the benefits of the 4.7 litre over the 7 liter engine. But more importantly their faces glow with the pride of ownership and sheer joy they experienced in transforming what was once a beast of scrap iron into the beautiful machine you see today.

After about an hour of milling among the thronging crowd of feisty kids, avid photographers, proud old ladies and chatty old men- the piece de resistance- the rally.

Even the sun decided to play ball, and though bright and warm, wasn’t as hot as Amdavad summers usually are. And as we lined up on both sides of the road, one by one they came- bright, colorful gleaming, sashaying…nay hotstepping down the road, their owners grinning from ear to ear and waving

Buicks, Morris Minors, Volkswagen, Jaguars, Talbots, one by one they came, bumper to bumper they stood and with one final hurrah…turned the corner

That day got over sooner than I would have liked, but the feeling of a morning spent in the glory of a time gone by, will remain with me always .

Here’s a shout out to Mr. Subodh Nath and the Gujarat Vintage and Classic Car Club. Bravissimo! Hope there is more to come.

Some of the sights and wonders of that day are posted here. for the rest visit our Flickr channel on www.flickr.com/opencircle