Shomenath Roy Chowdhury’s Jaguar XK140 once Transported Tiger Pataudi in Style

You’d never guess, if you drove around that corner plot in Delhi’s Defence Colony, what incredible cars are hidden behind those high gates. Yet, when the gates opened, I found myself having to pick my jaw off the road before walking in. There were six of them in the driveway, parked two abreast, one after the other. I couldn’t see them then, but I knew from the silhouette of the covers that each was special. Among them, as I was shown later, was the protagonist of our story. A rare and very special 1957 Jaguar XK140, with a star-studded history, having been the personal set of wheels for Mansoor Ali Khan ‘Tiger’ Pataudi. In fact, the old registration book, which is now with Roy Chowdhury, has him as the first owner.

The car came up for sale somewhere in the early 2000s and caught the eye of Shomenath Roy Chowdhury, who had a special fascination for Jaguars in any case. “My dad had a fascination for Jags.  At one point, he had a bunch of Jags. He had a Mark II, a Mark IV, a Mark V, a Mark VII, and a Mark X,” says Saurya Vikram Roy Chowdhury, Shomenath’s son and an enthusiast in equal measure. Therefore, there was little to no convincing that was required for him to acquire the XK 140 in question for a princely sum and bring it home. That was 2001.

At the time, Saurya was six. “I think I was born with this love for cars. Of course, I’ve got it from dad,” he says. The very first classic car was acquired in the early 1990s – a Buick Super Eight, but there has been no looking back since." 

Even in 2001, 44 years after it was produced, the ex-Pataudi Jag sports car looked racy and stylish as ever. But it needed serious TLC – repairs and restoration in car terms. Back then, the restoration game in India was nowhere near what it is today, especially in the absence of that all-important internet. Not one to be bested by such trivial issues, Shomenath got his hands on all available material to help him research and rebuild the XK140 to its full glory.

“He has been very meticulous with his cars. Always has been. He got all these Haynes books and manuals, imported all the necessary spares, and had much of the vehicle repaired,” says Saurya. Even new seats were bought from Jag specialists in the UK.

For Shomenath, it was important that the cars don’t just look good but also run well. “We love driving,” says Saurya, and that is evident from the fact that the Jag has been driven from Delhi to Jaipur and back a few times. Other historic cars in the stable are also driven from time to time. Saurya’s own tryst with cars started early, having been taught at the tender age of 11 by a similarly aged cousin who had learnt to operate vehicles just a week before that. 

“At that time, we would move the cars a bit within the compound of our house,” he says with a smile. With age came responsibility, which in this case turned out to be valet duties. “Cars had to be moved when we wanted to play badminton or something in our house. So, we were trusted to move the cars ahead or park them somewhere else so that we’d get space to play,” he remembers. From there on, it has been a steady journey upwards to a point where Saurya is the only one his dad trusts to drive his old cars. Not even Saurya’s older brother gets that privilege. Thanks to this, he has driven the Jaguar XK140. "The first time I drove it was in 2016 at The Statesman Vintage and Classic Car Rally in Delhi. I can tell you, even today, she runs like a dream," he says.