In this book, historians Charles Allen and Sharada Dwivedi tell the story of a unique institution that is as much beloved icon as hotel. From the day it first opened its doors on 16 December 1903, The Taj Mahal Palace Hotel - always known simply as ‘The Taj’ - was acknowledged as India’s finest hotel. Built on the landing stage knows as Apollo Bunder at a time when the city of Bombay was in crisis, ‘Tata’s white elephant’ went on to become the flagship of the most successful hotel chain in Asia.
In its founder, its standards, its role in philanthropy and charity, as a trysting-place for lovers, a haven for film-stars, maharajas, business tycoons and politicians alike, and as a witness to momentous events, the Taj has come to epitomise the enterprising resilient spirit of the Island City. It has an extraordinary and heartwarming story to tell - one that seemed complete when the Taj celebrated its first centenary in 2003. But as management and staff prepared the grand dame for the next hundred years, tragedy struck on the night of 26 November 2008. The magnificent response of the Taj ‘family’ to those shocking events and the sacrifices they made has now added another glorious chapter to the Taj story.

CHARLES ALLEN Historian, broadcaster and traveller, Charles Allen was born in India in the last years of the British Raj, where five generations of his family had lived and served. Since returning to the sub-continent as a volunteer teacher in the late 1960s, he has travelled extensively throughout India, the Himalayas and central Asia. A recipient of the Royal Society for Asian Affairs Sir Percy Sykes Gold Medal for his contribution to Asian studies, Allen began his professional career writing documentaries for BBC Radio, leading to his specialisation as an oral historian and the production of more than a dozen series for radio and television. His early published work includes: The Search for Shangri La; Thunder and Lightning; The Savage Wars of Peace; A Glimpse of the Burning Plain; Kipling’s Kingdom; A Mountain in Tibet; Tales from the South China Seas; Tales from the Dark Continent; Raj: a Scrapbook of British India; and Plain Tales from the Raj. His more recent published work includes: a biography of the young Rudyard Kipling in India, Kipling Sahib: India and the Making of Rudyard Kipling (2007); God’s Terrorists: the Wahhabi Cult and the Hidden Roots of Modern Jihad (2006); Duel in the Snows: the True Story of the Younghusband Mission to Tibet (2004); The Buddha and the Sahibs: The Men Who Discovered India’s Lost Religion (2002); and Soldier Sahibs: The Men Who Made the North West Frontier (2000).

SHARADA DWIVEDI Writer, researcher and publisher, Sharada Dwivedi was educated at Queen Mary’s School and Sydenham College of Commerce & Economics in Bombay, followed by a degree in Library Science from Bombay University and training in reference work in Paris. She writes on a variety of subjects including art, architecture, heritage and the traditions of cuisine. She is active with several conservation projects, has served on the Mumbai Heritage Conservation Committee and is on the Executive Committee of the Urban Design Research Institute (UDRI). Her publications include Bombay: The Cities Within (1995, 2001); Banganga: Sacred Tank (1996, 2006); Reach for the Stars: The Story of Blue Star Ltd (1993, 2003); Fort Walks (1999); The Maharaja and the Princely States of India (1999); Anchoring a City Line: The History of the Western Suburban Railway (2000); The Bombay High Court: 1878-2003 (2003); The Automobiles of the Maharajas (2003); Almond Eyes Lotus Feet (2005); A City Icon: Victoria Terminus 1887 now Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus 1996 (2006); and Bombay Deco (2008).
In 1983 Charles Allen joined forces with fellow historian Sharada Dwivedi to research and write the best-selling Lives of the Indian Princes (1984), subsequently filmed as Maharajas. As co-authors of the history of the Taj Mahal Hotel, their research encompassed more than two hundred interviews and extended over more than two decades.