The curtains at The Statesman Vintage and Classic Car Rally came down at the Eastern Command Sports Stadium on a high note with old and new cars taking part in the 53rd edition of the rally. The rally had evoked great enthusiasm and many young people including college and university students were happily taking snaps of the old cars.

A 1947-make Chevrolet Fleetmaster owned by Techno India got the best car restoration award in its inaugural debut. The vehicle has been restored by Father & Son Restorations, an initiative of Pallab Roy (the father) and Saurav (the son). Every part of the vehicle is original and it was a crowd puller at the rally. Another car, a Studebaker Dictator, also restored by Father & Son Restorations, was part of the rally.

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A Dodge Kingsway used by the Commissioners of Kolkata Police till the early 1990s took part in the rally. The black car with a red light on top was a well known sight in the city. PK Sen who was the Commissioner of Police used to drive the vehicle. An Austin Sheerline of the Indian Army was a car puller. The huge black car was used by the senior Army officers of Fort William. The Sheerline cars had been manufactured from 1947 to 1954. The car was as big as a Rolls Royce or Bentley but was available at a much lower price. A Blue Plymouth once owned by Hemanta Mukhopadhyay and now owned by SK Lahiri was a crowd puller. Mukhopadhyay bought this car after he became famous as a composer in early 1950s. It was his favourite car and he sold it in the early 1970s.

The car was bought by the Lahiri family and was thoroughly restored by its present owner. A red Triumph which was once owned by Jackie Shroff which is now owned by Saikat Datta completed the rally route without any hitch. A Ford Anglia, which car is referred to in the Harry Potter books participated in the rally in the Classic section. Owned by Amritalal Roy now, the vehicle once belonged to ace footballer Subhas Bhowmick. Mr Pallab Roy joined the rally with his fleet of cars, including a 1928 eight cylinder Studebaker owned by his grand father Babu Kamalaranjan Roy of Cossimbazar.

The American giant which will be celebrating its centenary in a few years time can compete with any vehicle half of its age. His other cars were a 1967- make left hand drive Mercedes Benz and a rare Ford Mercury. A 1937 Rolls Royce which was used by Rajendra Prasad, the first President of India was a crowd puller because of its elegance.

Driven by Mr Vasant Kanoria the British prestige car completed the 14.5 km route as if it had just rolled out of the factory. A Rolls Royce owned by Avik Naha which had joined the rally for the first time was a head turner. Two veterans, a 1906 Renault and a 1913 Stoewer, were part in the rally as usual. The Renault was on static display, while the Stoewer completed the route with ease.