Come summer and the well-heeled glitterati of India descends on London. While film stars like Kajol or Shah Rukh Khan can be spotted in stores like Harvey Nichols, Harrods or Selfridges, sportstars throng The Ivy or such classy restaurants. And why not, the London summer is fun, much better than cities like New York. London also has the additional charm of international cricket and Wimbledon at this time of year. Apart from the love of sports, most want to be seen at the Royal Box, on the Centre Court in Wimbledon and at Lords.
The last two years have been a different story, thanks to COVID-19, but otherwise, tennis doyen Vijay Amritraj has been a regular in London during Wimbledon, and one would often bump into him at the Taj hotel at Buckingham Gate. An evening reception in honour of Amritraj was an annual event for us at the hotel, with former cricketers like Faroukh Engineer and Sunil Gavaskar often attending the evening. Amritraj has also remained busy being interviewed by scribes like us, giving his expert comments on the Championship.
An Array of Indian Players Have Made their Mark
This year, it is different. Amritraj was at Taj last week to be honoured with the 2021 Golden Achievement Award for his contribution to tennis jointly by the International Tennis Hall of Fame and the International Tennis Federation in London. The award, presented to him this year at the Taj hotel, is given to people who have made important contributions internationally to tennis in the fields of administration, promotion, or education, and have devoted long and outstanding service to the sport.
Indeed, I cannot remember the last time I hadn’t seen and met Amritraj during the Wimbledon Championships. Wimbledon and Amritraj are inseparable for Indians like us here. Not just us but he has been, and definitely is, an inspiration for the growing number of Indian tennis players at Wimbledon. He has become the first Indian recipient of the award and joins an esteemed list of tennis leaders who have received the honour, including Brian Tobin of Australia, Eiichi Kawatei of Japan, and Peachy Kellmeyer of the United States.
We have had an array of Indian players who have made their mark in Wimbledon, from Ramanathan Krishnan, Ramesh Krishnan, Vijay Amritraj to Leander Paes, Mahesh Bhupati and Sania Mirza, among others.
For Desis, Wimbledon Is More Than Just Tennis
But away from the courts, Wimbledon is an experience that an increasing number of young desis like to experience, and you can see that in the queues for match tickets. I know of many young Indians who plan their trip to the UK around securing tickets for Wimbledon, followed by tickets for watching cricket at Lords or the Oval. It’s the experience that counts. At Wimbledon, apart from the match, it's also about the strawberries and cream, Pimms and champagne. It’s about history.
Pimms is Wimbledon’s cocktail of choice. Ever since Pimms’ first pop-up bar opened at the 1971 Wimbledon Championships, it is estimated that 276,291 glasses of Pimms are served to spectators each year.
Champagne Lanson has been associated with Wimbledon since 1977 – now the official supplier of champagne to the Championships. The strawberry craze began with King George V, who first brought strawberries to Wimbledon in the early 1900s. They are picked in Kent at dawn before being delivered to the grounds.
That apart, it’s also about star attraction, and desis are quite star-obsessed. Last year, Tom Cruise and Priyanka Chopra were spotted at Wimbledon. But it was Chopra who made it to the grapevine for her closeness to Meghan Markle and, therefore, allegedly giving a cold shoulder to the Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, which hit the front pages of tabloids. After all, a little masala makes an otherwise serious championship more interesting for the hoi polloi and more so for the ‘desis’.
Unfortunately, I wish I could add some spicy detail for this year’s Wimbledon, but I have no knowledge of desi celebrities who have already landed … Kajol was here, she has checked out … the stars will be here closer to the quarter/semi/finals. The final week of Wimbledon is the time to watch out for all the desi glitterati.
(Nabanita Sircar is a senior journalist based in London. She tweets at @sircarnabanita. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)
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