In the opening scene of The League of Gentlemen, a 1960 British crime drama, a manhole opens in the dead of the night and from it emerges the protagonist, Jack Hawkins. Straightening his dinner suit and bowtie, he quickly walks across the deserted street to a Rolls-Royce 20/25 and drives away. For the next minute-and-a-half, the camera stays on the shiny black car as the credits roll to suspenseful music.
The Rolls-Royce 20/25, which also features prominently in the British comedy, Father Came Too! (1963), and the action-horror, The Brides of Fu Manchu (1966), was built from 1929 to 1936 - the period between the two World Wars. So successful was it that it helped Rolls-Royce survive the decade-long Great Depression, which coincidentally began the year this model was introduced.
In all 3,827 cars were manufactured, one of which, a 1934 Rolls-Royce 20/25 limousine built by Thrupp & Maberly, the coach makers to Queen Victoria, will come up for bidding at AstaGuru's fifth vintage car auction in the third week of November, to be conducted online.
Well-designed and easier to maintain, from vintage vehicle standards, a majority of these cars are reported to be still in use globally. In India, though, whoever buys it will not be able to drive it around routinely.
The law of the land does not permit vintage cars to be driven for regular or commercial purposes. These head turners are allowed on the road only for exhibition, maintenance, refuelling, or for one-off rallies that require permission. Their owners cannot park them in public.
None of this stops the enthusiasts from participating in private sales and auctions, held largely online by organisations such as AstaGuru, Heritage Auctions, and Big Boy Toyz.
This story is from the October 19, 2024 edition of Business Standard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 19, 2024 edition of Business Standard.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Disney-Reliance JV to stream live sports only on Hotstar
All live sporting events streamed by the newly merged Disney-Reliance business in India, including Indian Premier League (IPL), will only be available on Disney's Hotstar app, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters.
The wonder that was the Indosphere
The Wonder That Was India would have been the most appropriate name for William Dalrymple's rich and enriching book had it not been the title of A L Basham's classic work. All serious students growing up in the 1960s and 1970s and wanting to learn about ancient India read Basham's book. Dalrymple takes up some of the themes covered by Basham and adds to them greater depth, more themes and new evidence. He complements all this by an analysis of how the cultures of ancient India were transmitted across a wide geographical space that Dalrymple calls the Indosphere. This is a book that should not be missed by anyone interested in the world of ancient Indian cultures.
UP THE MEMORY LANE
With registration of vintage cars formalised and rise of ultra-rich Indians, brace up for a beauty parade
Cost-cutting boosts ZEEL profit by 70%
Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) on Friday reported a net profit of ₹209.4 crore in the second quarter of the financial year (Q2 FY25), rising 70.2 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) after it cut costs.
Tata Consumer Products profit up 8% at ₹364 cr
Starbucks now largest café chain
Limit small and medium Reit exposure at 5% till they develop track record
Propertyshare Two players, and Rudrabhishek Enterprises, have received licences from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) to launch small and medium real estate investment trusts (SM Reits). The first SM Reits could debut as early as November.
Vistara in-flight experience will last for 'some time' after merger
Air India has taken the step to reassure Vistara passengers concerned over quality
Axis Bank shares rally over 5% after Q2 results
Brokerages cut earnings estimates, see limited downside in stock
FPI exodus: Financial sector bears the brunt
The first fortnight of the month saw record ₹66,300 crore ($7.9 billion) outflows from foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) as the trend sell-India-buy-China gathered pace.
Margin pressure ahead for city gas distribution majors
The city gas distribution (CGD) sector is struggling to cope with a sharp reduction in allocation of administered price mechanism (APM) gas.