The second Cartier ‘Travel with Style’ Concours was an extraordinary showcase of India’s unique Classic Cars on March 12 at The Polo Grounds, New Delhi.

In keeping with the spirit and excitement of a ‘true’ Concours, each vintage car had to be in running order and make one circuit at the event, making for a truly stunning spectacle of India’s rich motoring heritage.

Mr Bernard Fornas, President and CEO of Cartier International said, ‘India has had an influence on the creativity of Cartier. We are very close to the country and our relationship goes back to more than 100 years.’

‘Cartier Concours d’Elegance is one of the 4 big concours in the world, and it’s a significant endeavour which takes a lot of effort for us to put together. We are delighted to showcase the crème de la crème of cars at Cartier “Travel with Style”’.

This year, 56 cars were invited to compete in seven categories. Special additional categories this year included a Children’s Choice award, the judges for which were the children of judges John McCaw and William ‘Chip’ Connor II, and a Lady Judge’s Choice award, given by former model Yasmin Le Bon.

The ‘Throne Car’, a 1911 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost Dome Roof Limousine owned by HIH Princess Ezra of Hyderabad was awarded the prestigious ‘Best Car of the Show’ award by Bernard Fornas of Cartier at the awards ceremony.

A panel of internationally renowned judges, comprising of HRH Prince Michael of Kent, Sir Anthony Bamford, David Clark, William ‘Chip’ Connor II, Sir Michael Kadoorie, Yasmine Le Bon, Olivier Martinez, John McCaw, Gordon Murray, Bryan Ferry and Peter Stevens, was at hand to announce the winners in the Awards Ceremony. The master of Ceremonies was Mr Alain de Cadenet, who has made his reputation building and driving his own sports prototypes.

Winners at the Cartier ‘Travel with Style’ Concours d’Elegance 2011

The Best Car of the Show Award for 2011:

1911 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost Dome Roof Limousine (the Throne Car), owned by HIH Princess Ezra of Hyderabad

Best of Class:

1911 Rolls Royce Silver Ghost Dome Roof Limousine, owned by HIH Princess Ezra of Hyderabad

Jaguar Class:

Runner up—1947 SS Jaguar, owned by Mr Laxmi Raman

Best of Class—1937 SS Jaguar, owned by Mr TT Raghunathan

Roadster Class:

Best of Class—1959 Daimler SP 250 Dart, owned by Mr V.P. Singh Badnore

Indian Heritage Class:

Best of Class—1955 Fiat 1100-103 Millecento, owned by Mr Owais Moshin Kidwai

Post-War Classics Class:

American Runner up—1956 Cadillac Series 62 Convertible, owned by Mr Sudhir Kasliwal

European Runner up—1958 Mercedes 300D, owned by Mr K.C. Anand

Best of Class—1947 Cadillac Series 62, owned by Mr Amal Tanna

Resurrection Cup:

1929 Mercedes Nurburg, owned by Viveck Goenka

Judges Choice (Ladies):

1928 Lancia Di Lambda, owned by Mr Prahlad Agarwalla

Classics Class:

Runner up—1930 Stutz Series M, owned by Mr Diljeet Titus

Best of Class—1938 Bentley 4 ¼ litre overdrive MX Series, owned by Mr Jaiswal

Preservation Class:

Best of Class—1959 Chevrolet Impala, owned by Mr Sukhwant Singh 

Classics Rolls Royce Class:

Runner up—1937 Rolls Royce 25/30 h.p., owned by Roshni Jaiswal

Children’s Choice:

1925 Rolls Royce Phantom 1, owned by Mr Yadupati Singhania