Abhimanyu Alsisar: A Man And His Jeeps

Abhimanyu Alsisar is a man of details.

His beret is always tipped to a certain angle. His leather loafers bear the initials ‘AA’. His muslin kurta and dhoti are custom made for the harsh heat of Rajasthan. A metallic Omega Seamaster sits on his left wrist. Classy.

He is also very practical about the vehicles he drives. “There is no alternative to a jeep. I hate automatics!” he states. There are no two ways about how much Alsisar loves owning and driving a good 4x4. It doesn’t matter if it’s a Jonga, Ford, Willys, Land Cruiser or a Bantam.

Why jeeps, I ask him. “Because a jeep can go anywhere,” he replies in a heartbeat. “I live in the desert, which is so vast and beautiful. Jeeps are the only proper mode of commuting here. In the olden days, jeeps were used to send messages. They came into India as an alternative to horses and camels.” What is it about jeeps that captivates a man who’s never studied cars or engineering? The hotelier, from the royal family of Alsisar, located in Rajasthan, is the proud owner of a collection of vintage jeeps that span decades, some models going as far back as 1942. Every vehicle has a memory, a story attached to it. Some are even a piece of history.

On a balmy Saturday morning, all of Alsisar’s “beauties” are parked inside the main courtyard of the storied Alsisar Palace. This is an exclusive sneak peek since his entire jeep collection has never been captured on camera before. This includes a 1942 Ford GPW, 1948 Land Rover Series 1, 1949 CJ2A Willys, 1952 CJ3A Willys, 1953 M38 A1 Willys, 1954 M38 A1 Willys, 1960 CJ3B Willys, 1970 CJ5 Renegade Willys, 1970 CJ6 Willys (fondly named “Makku Singh”), 1955 Land Rover Series 1, a Ford 1944 GPW (which has been cut in half and located in two separate parts of the palace).

He is currently restoring another 1970 CJ5 Renegade and a 1952 CJ3A Willys, which will be dubbed “Mirchi Singh” thanks to its bright red livery. “I plan to build a music console inside it. It will go into one of my baithaks,” says Alsisar, who is also the co-founder of the music festival Magnetic Fields. “I like my jeeps to have beautiful colours, which add a lot of positive energy. They cannot look dull or sloppy.”

The family has been long associated with jeeps. In 1947, Alsisar’s great-grandfather drove home their first Willys MB—known as the original jeep. For Alsisar, the ‘jeep or nothing’ obsession started when he was 16. His first ride was supposed to be a Matchless motorcycle. Caught between his grandmother's willingness to get him one and his father’s reluctance, he ended up with a jeep—a safer option according to the latter. “It was my father’s jeep. I went to school and college in this. The number of things I’ve done with this jeep is unbelievable,” says Alsisar, as he gently taps the hood of the 1954 M38 A1 Willys. His daily ride now is a Pajero Sport that has clocked more than three lakh kilometres.

Some of these jeep models are extremely rare. The 1948 Land Rover Series 1, for instance, saw a production of just 3,048 models globally. “This is the first ever. This is very rare. There are two or three of them in India,” he explains. Similarly, there are only six of the 1955 Land Rover Series 1 in the whole of Rajasthan.

The 1953 M38 A1 Willys is a wartime remnant. “In 1965, about 29 of these jeeps were captured during the (Indo-Pakistan) war. There are only 22 traceable in the country today,” says Alsisar.

Makku Singh, the bulkiest of the lot, was originally designed to be an ambulance, with a longer chassis compared to the CJ5. “This is my most precious and best work,” says Alsisar. “These came to India through UNICEF and Australia, which is why they are originally right-hand drives,” explains Alsisar. The CJ6 is also a fine example of Alsisar’s love for customisation—jerry cans for fuel, shovels, a makeshift ledge that can hold glasses and a mounted Coca-Cola themed bottle opener. It’s like an ultimate survival kit on four wheels, built for the harsh realities of the Great Indian desert.

Like Alsisar's long association with jeeps, the story of how these vehicles changed the world of automobiles is equally fascinating. In 1940, the US Army invited automakers to bid to produce a light reconnaissance vehicle to replace the Army’s motorcycle and modified Ford Model-T vehicles. Willys-Overland, American Bantam Car Manufacturing Company and Ford were in contention. Willys came up with the Willys Quad, later known as the Willys MA, renowned for its rugged performance and all-purpose nature. Willys would go on to trademark the “Jeep” name after the war and introduce it as a civilian vehicle. The rest is history as the all-performance jeep became a blueprint for many modern-day successful SUVs.

While Alsisar has been on many overlanding expeditions in his jeeps—in 2022 he spearheaded the Legacy Drive, an expedition consisting of 27 drivers and multiple jeeps, both vintage and modern, from Alsisar to Bakasar—there appears to be no end to his relationship with the 4x4s. “I put my heart into my jeeps. I find music in the sound of my engines,” he tells me. “Every jeep shows who I am.”

Restorations on the jeeps can cost anywhere between `4-5 lakh. Once restored, these vehicles are invaluable, says Alsisar. Locating and acquiring them is another hurdle. From word-of-mouth to auctions, some of his jeeps were brought in from like Bhopal, Mysuru, Lucknow before they were restored to their current glory. The value of his entire collection stands anywhere between ₹5-6 crore.

“A lot goes into their upkeep,” he adds. “The spare parts are hard to find. I have friends and family in the US who get me some of these spares. The toughest part is finding the right mechanics and restorers. There are very few of them who understand these vehicles,” says Alsisar.

While the family has a host of collectibles—from artwork, vintage weapons and swords to miniature car models—Alsisar says he would like his daughters, Meera and Kamaakhya, to follow suit whenever they are ready to get behind the wheel. “When you start on a jeep, you tend to be a good driver, because it is not easy to drive them. I want them to look after the collection. One hundred per cent,” says Alsisar, who has a tradition of gifting a jeep to his younger brother every year.

The scorching sun be damned. It is time for us to experience one of the jeeps. Alsisar and four of us ride out of the palace in his 1949 CJ 2A Willys. The Normandy Blue shade on the 4x4 glistens as it picks up speed on the road. There are no handles to hold on the vehicle. You grab onto whatever you can manage to find a safe grip in this speedster. “It’s so light and beautiful. If you put me on a track with this jeep, I am impossible to catch,” Alsisar quips.

A couple of kilometres later, Alsisar swerves the vehicle on to a dirt track that leads to the dunes. He puts the jeep into four-wheel drive. What follows is an obstacle course, as we drive through wild vegetation, thorny plants and tall grass. We barely dodge a bullock cart by diving into a small ditch. The Willys feels like it will topple, but Alsisar has the vehicle under his expert control. We climb a hill. We come down a hill. We survive. If there was ever a quick 4x4 off-roading drive, then this was it.

On our way back to the palace—driving on normal roads in one piece—as the jeep’s speedometer touches closes to 85, Alsisar’s beret has not moved an inch from its natural position. The wind howls and flutters in my ears as my eyes struggle to stay open behind my sunglasses. The hair on my arms dances like the sand dunes we just conquered.

So, this is how it feels like to fly in a jeep.

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