Ratan Tata Officers Holiday Home: A Tryst with Heritage
(FAUJI January
2018)
Major General
Mrinal Suman
Located in the Nilgiri
Hills (literally ‘mountains with blue haze’), Ooty (variously referred to as
Ootacamund and Udagamandalam) is a popular hill station. The area was
originally inhabited by the Toda tribe who were famous for raising water
buffalo. Various dynasties ruled Nligiris till it was captured by Tipu Sultan
in the 18th century, only to be ceded to the East India Company in
1799. It was in the early 19th century that Collector of Coimbatore,
John Sullivan decided to open the area by constructing a road. Development of the area got a major boost in 1908 with
the construction of the Nilgiri
Mountain Railway, the only rack
railway in India.
Over a
period of time, Ooty became a popular summer resort. Convalescing soldiers were
regularly sent to nearby Wellington for recuperation. ‘Stone House’, built by John
Sullivan in April 1822, was the first house
in Ooty. Many Europeans followed suit and soon there was a fair
sprinkling of bungalows and farm houses.
In 1870,
an impressive building called ‘Harrow-on-the-Hill’ was built on a hillock overlooking the town
of Ooty in an area of 8.05 acres. A number of quarters for the attendants and the
serving staff were also constructed. Due to its unique location, the property
soon acquired prominence in the city.
Although exact details
about the original owner of ‘Harrow-on-the-Hill’ are shrouded in obscurity, old
inhabitants of the area vaguely recall the name of a James Saheb, a tall
friendly Britisher with goatee beard. It is
quite possible that he belonged to Harrow-on-the-Hill, an area north west of London,
and named the building thus.
He was a keen rider and
possessed a number of good steeds. He got the area around the house cleared and
planted select trees and plants. He was proud of his garden and was often seen
working with a shovel in hand.
Some old servants claim
that they had heard their elders telling them about James Saheb’s happy family, a loving wife and two sons. However,
the property was sold to Tatas in 1900. Precise reasons for the sale are not
known. Some say that James Saheb migrated to Australia while others believe
that he was recalled to England as he had fallen in love with a local girl, the
pretty daughter of the house gardener.
Jamsetji Tata, the founder
of the Tata business house, had two sons – Dorabji Tata (born in August 1859) and
Ratanji Tata (born in January 1871). Ratanji Tata married Navazbai in 1893. The
couple made ‘Harrow-on-the-Hill’ their residence. Ratanji was a great philanthropist and an ardent horse-riding
enthusiast. His wife also learnt riding to give him company. By all accounts,
they were exceedingly happy in the sylvan environment of Ooty.
Unfortunately, Ratanji
Tata fell ill and had to sail to England for treatment in 1915. Even while
undergoing treatment, he continued with his philanthropic activities and willed
a major part of his assets for charitable purposes. He was knighted in 1916 for
his humanitarian services. He died in September 1918 at Cornwall, England and
was buried at Brookwood Cemetery, by the side of his father (Jamsetji Tata).
After her husband’s death,
Lady Tata decided to make Bombay her residence. With an initial corpus of Rs 8
million, ‘Sir Ratan Tata Trust’ was established in 1919 with Lady Tata as the chairperson. She continued
to head the trust till her death in August 1965.
As ‘Harrow-on-the-Hill’ had
been lying unoccupied for long, the wife of the then Governor of Madras Lady
Willington requested Lady Tata to let the bungalow be used as a convalescent
home for wounded soldiers. Acceding to the request, the trust donated the property
to the defence services through an indenture in December 1922, with the
following main conditions:-
(a) The property was to be
used as ‘Convalescent Home’ for all officers holding His Majesty’s Commission
in the Regular Army, Royal Navy, Royal Indian Marine, Indian Medical Service
and Royal Air Force.
(b)His Excellency, the Viceroy of India was to make rules and
regulations for the management of the institution.
(c) The property was to bear the
name ‘The Ratan Tata Convalescent Home for Officers’.
To accommodate more
soldiers, the Britishers added a wing with two floors having eight rooms on
each floor with attached bathrooms. The expanded home has a total of 19 double-bedded
rooms with two drawing rooms, a large dining hall, cook house, a pantry with
store rooms and 43 servant quarters.
After Independence, Field
Marshal Cariappa approached Lady Navazbai Tata with a request to allow the
property to be used by the officers of the Indian defence services as a holiday
home. The magnanimous lady readily gave her consent.
Renamed as ‘Ratan Tata
Officers Holiday Home’, the property is under the control of Headquarters ATNK
& K Area, Chennai whereas the administration is managed by Madras Regimental Centre, Wellington. Tariff has been kept at a very reasonable
level.
It is to the credit of the
army that the property continues to retain its old world charm with well
maintained building, manicured lawns, rows of flower beds and lush green
forest. Magnificent portraits of Sir Ratanji Tata and Lady Navazbai Tata adorn
the walls of the drawing room. A sketch of the original building is displayed
in the main foyer.
The morning coffee room has
a unique piano made by the famous EF Gruss of Germany. The brass plaque reads, ‘E
F Gruss Frankfurt Oder (Nilgiri Model)’, indicating that it is a custom-made
piano and perhaps the only one of its type. Heavily built with brass rods in
the keys for extra strength, it is an upright travelling piano normally used on
board cruise liners, capable of withstanding rigours of turbulent seas. There
are two folding candle holders mounted on the piano for surreal effect. Although
vintage of the piano is not known, it is in perfect working condition, well polished
and duly tuned.
Presently, Colonel S K Singh of 2 KUMAON is the
officer-in-charge of the holiday home. He deserves credit for immaculate maintenance
of the property; well trained, caring and polite staff; delicious cuisine; and,
above all, warm hospitality.
Stay at Ratan Tata Officers Home is indeed a
tryst with heritage, a nostalgic journey into history that resonates with the
laughter of an English family, sound of hooves of the horses ridden by a young
Parsee couple and fervent prayers of the convalescing soldiers. The tranquil
surroundings of the home provide an ideal getaway for those service officers who
love to spend a few days in the idyllic lap of the nature.*****
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