IN her small handbook, Mahabaleshwar - The Club, 1881-1991, author Perin Bharucha concludes: �With the coming of Independence, there was no question but that Indians of all shades and hues (of skin, not character) were eligible for the Club�s membership. Eligibility no longer depended on the colour of the applicant�s skin. Which may perhaps indicate why the history of The Club, Mahabaleshwar, is more entertaining between 1881 and 1947, than between 1947 and 1981. So, on to 2081...�

Which indicates, perhaps, that if not the Raj, then the ghosts of the Raj at least still live on in Mahabaleshwar at The Club. Mahabaleshwar itself, was discovered by the British as a refuge from the grinding heat of the plains, and The Club came up there in 1881 as an all-white island of privilege to where the British rulers of India could escape from the hordes of brown men and women whom it was their task to govern. It stands forlornly now, a lovely old Gothic structure with an elegant dining room having white embroidered curtains and table-cloths, sparkling glasses, shining cutlery and candle-stands for when the electricity fails in Mahabaleshwar as it frequently does. There is also a billiards room, a dressing room, a bar, a TV room wasted with springboard flooring, and verandahs on which chairs have been strategically placed for members to sit and ruminate.