The Way We Hunt!

When you think of hunting, you think of trudging through the jungle. At best, you would imagine being on horseback. Well, if you were Indian royalty in the early 20th century that simply wouldn’t do.

Hunting, the Maharaja way, was a comfortable and leisurely activity. And we have proof of that in the form of this 1925 Rolls-Royce Phantom. Just imagine sitting in a massive Rolls-Royce, and fording your way through the dense Indian jungle searching for prey. And it wasn’t just any old Rolls – this one had a gun and rifle mount, two heavy duty search lights (needed for tiger hunting at night), a nickel plated snake horn, a concealed safe, and, the piece de resistance, a mountable brass cannon. You’ll agree that’s quite a bit of firepower for a shikar.

The car was commissioned by Sahib Bahadur – also known as Umed Singh II, the Maharaja of Kotah. The Maharaja commissioned this vehicle in 1925, and it was built in Derby, England, by the Rolls-Royce preferred coach builder Barker & Company of London. This massive and impeccably crafted Phantom is powered by an 8.0 litre, 6-cylinder engine with dual-spark ignition and a low-gear ratio to easily traverse through the rough jungle terrain.

By the time you read this, the car will likely already have been auctioned at this years’ Bonhanms Quail Lodge auction during the Pebble Beach weekend in California. The expected price – between Rs. 3.5 and 4.5 crores.