Romancing the road

Vintage rally

I t was a regal Sunday morning with a bevy of beauties lining up ITC Windsor with their captivating looks. The age-old cars were all set to hit the roads.   

The occasion was the annual ‘Vintage and Classic Car Rally’ organised by the ‘Karnataka Vintage and Classic Car Club’ from ITC Windsor to ITC Gardenia with the theme ‘Road Safety and Traffic Discipline’. The rally started soon after the signal flag was waved before the oldest car in the club — the 1919 Fiat. A troop of 36 relic cars and three classic bikes, all in chronological order of their models, followed it. The owners of the classic and vintage cars brought back the bygone years in style. With placards promoting road safety and discipline, they grabbed the attention of passers-by and motorists to get a quick picture of the cars!

Austin, Fiat, Daimler, Dodge Kingsway, Morris Minor, Chevrolet Fleetmaster, Chevrolet Bel Air, Standard Herald...the beauties of yesteryears were all out for a cause, screaming out awareness in a profound manner. Along with these were the thumping two-wheelers BSA M20, Triumph TRW and Royal Enfield that gave out the message of following the traffic rules.

The event was inaugurated by the Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic) MA Saleem who fostered the need for everyone to respect traffic norms. The President of KVCC, Sulaiman Jamal, appreciated the behind-the- scenes-effort of all the vintage and classic car owners in keeping the assets of the bygone years intact. “This is not a cheap endeavour as a lot of effort goes in maintaining the antique cars. This passion should go on and be passed on to the younger generation. The age of the cars and the age of the owners are quite a statement by itself,” said Sulaiman.

Suresh, an active member of the club who owns a fleet of vintage and classic cars said, “This annual event has been happening for the past 20 years now and each year, we have a different theme. The cars attract a lot of attention even in the busy traffic and it is a great way to nurture awareness among the public.” The owner of the Dodge Kingsway, Prithvi Ganapathy said, “This annual rally helps keep the passion of vintage car owners alive.”  K Subramani, one of the organisers and the owner of Chevrolet Fleetmaster said, “The cars attract a lot of attention and the placards carried on these cars can send out a strong message to Bengaluru’s public.”

The general manager of ITC Gardenia, who was present at the event said, “ITC has been associated closely with many events that happen for a cause. We have been hosting the KVCC rallies for the longest time now and this rally hopes good for the country and the City. Bengaluru traffic is reaching an uncontrollable state. The event with all the vintage cars going as a fleet is a good way to grab awareness of the public and this is the best way to fight road rage.”

There were a number of visitors who could not stop but click selfies with these antique machines.

One of the visitors, Mahesh said, “It was a banquet to see so many cars at one place. All well-maintained and in top notch condition, the efforts and passion of these car
 owners were visible in this
rally.”