An Indian Home from Home in London

By New Worker correspondent

A new National Trust exhibition opens in London this week, shining a light on the rich social history of one of the city’s most fascinating community spaces: The India Club.

Founded shortly after Indian independence by Krishna Menon, President Nehru and Lady Mountbatten, the India Club is perhaps better known for its close links with the India League that campaigned for the end of British rule in the sub-continent.

The Club itself was established to “promote and further Indo-British friendship” and quickly became a vibrant hub for a growing Indian community in London. With one of the earliest Indian restaurants in London, the India Club soon gained a reputation far beyond the Asian community. Although no longer a club, the restaurant and bar is still frequented by Indian diplomats, students and journalists.

Based around a newly-formed archive of oral history interviews carried out by National Trust volunteers, this small audio-based exhibition will provide visitors with the opportunity to engage with the lives and stories of those who considered the Club a ‘home-away-from-home’ from the late 1950s to the present day.

From 30^th January a new National Trust exhibition will be hosted in the ‘club’ itself, in the modest Hotel Strand Continental, allowing one the unique opportunity to drink in the atmosphere of this living history. Immerse yourself in the interactive audio exhibits and hear the first-hand stories of people connected with The India Club: from freedom fighters and descendants of its founding members to former staff, BBC reporters who worked in nearby Bush House, as well as artists and writers.

This exhibition at the India Club, 143 The Strand, London WC2R 1JA. It is free but you must book a timeslot in advance. Please note that although the India Club restaurant and bar may be open until late, the exhibition opens and closes at different times throughout the week. Tickets can be reserved via the National Trust website and further details can be obtained by calling (0)7780 004243 during working hours.

Remembering a comrade

Robyn Harris and Andy Brooks

By New Worker correspondent

Comrades and friends gathered at the India Club in London’s West End last weekend for a memorial dinner for Neil Harris, a leading member of the New Communist Party who spent many happy times in its bar and restaurant.

NCP leader Andy Brooks and several members of the Central Committee, including Daphne Liddle, Peter Hendy and Theo Russell, joined the throng that also included members of Neil’s jazz club and friends from his days at college in London.

Neil passed away in March after a long battle against cancer and the dinner was held on the eve of what would have been his 60^th birthday on 4^th November.  

The India Club has been a frequent venue for comrades over the years as well as students from the nearby London School of Economics. Neil was one of them in the 1970s and many of his LSE friends turned up to recall fond memories of Neil’s student days with his widow, Robyn, and others during the evening.

The venue, based in a hotel in the Strand, was originally set up as a meeting place for the India League, a British organisation that campaigned for India’s independence. The club itself was started by Krishna Menon, the left-wing Congress leader who was India's first High Commissioner to Britain after independence in 1947. Though no longer a club, the restaurant and bar is still frequented by Indian diplomats, students and journalists.

India Club saved

in the bar

By New Worker correspondent

London’s iconic India Club has been saved from redevelopment after Westminster council refused planning permission to developers who would have swept the iconic restaurant away to make way for an upmarket hotel.

This week Westminster Council’s planning committee said that the India Club, based in a hotel in the Strand, was an important cultural and night-time venue.

Although no longer a club, the restaurant and bar is still frequented by Indian diplomats, students and journalists. For over 50 years it has been based in the Strand and the club has many loyal supporters. Some 26,000 of them signed a petition to save the club.

The club, which has been a frequent venue for comrades over the years, was started by Krishna Menon, the left-wing Congress leader who was India's first High Commissioner to Britain after independence in 1947. It served as a meeting place for the India League, a British organisation that campaigned for India’s independence, for their post-independence meetings and activities.