Introduction
Gandhi’s birthday is generally a holiday when most people choose to be at home, eat some good food, visit public places of interest and more often than not drain through all the booze that they procured in a hurry at 10.45 the previous night when they realised that the next day was a dry day.
Having enjoyed his birthday in this questionable manner for the last two years, I decided that 2015 would be the year of change and promptly threw myself into an assignment. My destination for the day was the Sudha Car Museum and the opportunity to get a peek into the unrivalled imagination of K Sudhakar, the creator and owner of the ‘world’s wackiest car museum’.
Quirky, wacky and crazy are the first few terms that came to my head when I saw pictures of the museum. However, when I got there, out went the questionable adjectives and in came a true sense of wonder and amazement for these exhibits.
I may have been a bit harsh in trying to put down my initial thoughts but none of that matters as K. Sudhakar holds certification from the Limca book of Records, has been featured on Ripely’s Believe it or Not and most importantly, holds a Guinness World Record. The last one is for the world’s largest tricycle (It is 41 feet high!). These are pretty much the holy trio when it comes to achieving success for an unconventional achievement.
He has been obsessed with building vehicles since the age of 14 when he designed his first bicycle. A year later, he built a motorcycle based on the vehicles from the hit movie Easy Rider so as you can see the passion runs deep and the spark to create is just as bright as it was those many years ago.
Wackiness unleashed
1. The museum is divided into three sections with each section being even crazier than the next one.
2. As I stepped into the first section, I was greeted by a stiletto, lipstick, a flower filled cup, a cricket bat, replica of a London bus and a large toilet. Sound like a round of treasure hunt? No. These are all fully functional (large than life) vehicles.
3. Treasure hunt objects apart, the first section also houses a really innovative city car and a beautiful replica of a Triumph Sprite (built from the chassis of a Maruti Suzuki Esteem).
4. Each of these vehicles has been built from scrap or old cars making this quite an innovative and effective recycling process.
5. The second section appealed to the true petrol head in me as it had replicas of old British cars, a tastefully modified Premier Padmini and a pimped-out Maruti Suzuki 800.
6. This section also houses Sudhakar’s collection of original WW2 army vehicles. This includes a paradrop collapsible bicycle and motorcycle. These among everything else appeared to be in perfect condition.
7. I tried to climb into the Jeep to get a feel of what it would have been like out on the war fields of Europe seven decades ago but could manage just a single leg into the driver’s seat before realising that it had been set in place for its owner’s diminutive dimensions.
8. Having walked around and photographed everything for about 45 minutes now, I ventured into the third and fully unhinged section. It was here that I got a proper view into Sudhakar’s imagination.
9. Step in and you are greeted by a motorised pencil, pen, eraser, sharpener as well as a suitcase. These vehicles are powered by 160cc engines and can be driven around. Moving ahead I spotted a camera, birdcage, boot, burger and even a 90’s style desktop PC!
11. Taking a page out of the book of luxury manufacturers, Sudhakar has also designed a motorised bed, billiards table and a movable stage themed to look like an island of paradise for Satya Sai Baba when he spoke to his disciples in Hyderabad.
12. His collection also comprises a few motorcycles including an autorickshaw-Bullet trike hybrid as well as a vintage 1950s BSA. Oh, I must give special mention to a contraceptive shaped four-wheeler which he designed for world AIDS day.
14. There seems to be no limit to what Sudhakar can conjure up and we suspect that there will never be as it takes effort and imagination to build machine of such caliber, two things which he seems to have no dearth of.
15. The museum is filled with pictures of Sudhakar (in his youth) with his early creations as well as the many accolades he has received later on in life for his vehicles.
16. We would definitely recommend a visit if you are in any of twin cities. It is located at 19-5-15/1/D, Bahadurpura X-Road, Near Zoo Park, Hyderabad – 64. Tickets need to be purchased at the entrance gate before venturing into the museum.
