|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Shirish Joshi on the toy food train of the Gwalior Maharaja
WITH the wealth amassed in his state at his disposal, the then king of Gwalior in the 1940s was busy in indulging in his personal hobbies, and at times eccentricities. The Maharaja of Gwalior was very fond of electric trains. The Maharaja’s electric train track was laid out over 75-metres of solid silver rails set on a giant sized iron dining table at the centre of the palace banquet hall. Special tunnels cut in the palace walls extended the tracks into the royal kitchen. The Maharaja’s guests were seated around the table and the ruler sat at its head, presiding over a control panel that had levers, accelerators, switches and alarm signals. These controlled the trains that delivered dinner to his guests. By fiddling with the control panel, the prince could pass the vegetables, send the potatoes shuttling through the banquet hall, or order an express train to the kitchens for obtaining a second helping for his guests. With the flick of a switch, he could also deprive a guest of his sweet dish by sending the train speeding past his waiting plate. However, one evening, in the midst of a formal banquet in honour of the visiting Viceroy of India, the prince’s control panel went out of order. While the Viceroy and other guests looked on aghast, the electric trains ran wild, racing from one end of the banquet hall to the other, in high speed indifferently spraying curry, roast chicken and a curry of peas over the Maharaja’s guests. It was an accident
without a similar case in the history of the Railways. |
||
|
|
||
