The Royal Willingdon Sports Club is a private

sports club A sports club or sporting club, sometimes an athletics club or sports society or sports association, is a group of people formed for the purpose of playing sports. Sports clubs range from organisations whose members play together, unpaid, and ...

South Mumbai South Mumbai, colloquially SoBo from South Bombay in Indian English, administratively the Mumbai City District, is the city centre and the southernmost precinct of Greater Bombay. It extends from Colaba to Mahalaxmi (Western side), Byculla ...

. The club was founded in 1918 by

Lord Willingdon Freeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Marquess of Willingdon (12 September 1866 – 12 August 1941), styled as the Earl of Willingdon between 1931 and 1936, was a British people, British Liberal Party (UK), Liberal politician and administrator who served ...

, at that time

Governor of Bombay Until the 18th century, Bombay consisted of seven islands separated by shallow sea. These seven islands were part of a larger archipelago in the Arabian sea, off the western coast of India. The date of city's founding is unclear—historians tr ...

. Amenities include an 18-hole golf course, six tennis courts, squash and badminton courts, health club and a swimming pool. Non-sports amenities include a formal dining room, a semi-formal dining rooms, bar, garden cafe, bakery, members' provision and separate beer and wine shop, a swimming pool cafe and a plant nursery. Due to overwhelming demand, membership has been closed since 1985 and only the children of current members, on a selective basis, can become members. Almost all members belong to wealthy,

old money Old money is a social class of the rich who have been able to maintain their wealth over multiple generations, in contrast with new money whose wealth has been acquired within its own generation. The term often refers to perceived members of th ...

families. The club is very selective in granting membership to current members' children and the applicant’s family background takes top priority along with their profession. High society members of Bombay consider Willingdon one of the most prestigious club in the nation. The Club was one of the first to admit indigenous Indians before Partition. Willingdon, along with the

Breach Candy Bhulabhai Desai Road, also well known by the old name Warden Road (and the part at and near the swimming pool as Breach Candy), is a niche up-market residential and semi-commercial locality of South Mumbai. The area has many famous landmarks b ...

Club and

Bombay Gymkhana The Bombay Gymkhana, established in 1875, is a premier private members' club in the city of Mumbai, India. It is located at the triangular end of Azad Maidan in the Fort area of South Mumbai and is in close proximity of Chhatrapati Shivaji ...

, makes up the “Top Three” (a name coined for the top three private clubs of the city of Mumbai).

History

The Royal Willingdon Sports Club (WSC) was founded in 1918 by

, the then

. Willingdon was refused permission to take an

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

n Maharaja with him to the

, Byculla Club and Royal Bombay Yacht Club, which at the time allowed only Europeans and hence, decided to start a club that both Indians and Europeans could go to. Permanent membership is closed except for members' children though temporary corporate memberships are open but mostly taken by

expatriate An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. The term often refers to a professional, skilled worker, or student from an affluent country. However, it may also refer to retirees, artists and ...

s. In the 1980s membership was temporarily opened but then later closed due to overwhelming demand. In 2007, membership was opened to members' daughters as well, much to the consternation of some members, though a majority of Balloting and Disciplinary Committee members saw it fit to admit them as "younger people spend more money." Membership applications for "ordinary members" (members' sons), corporate members and "services" (

civil servants The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil service personnel hired rather than elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leadership. A civil service offic ...

and

armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...

) are decided by the Balloting and Disciplinary Committee. Indian newspaper ''

Mid-Day ''Mid-Day'' (stylised as mid-day) is a morning daily Indian compact newspaper. Editions in various languages including Gujarati and English have been published out of Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and Pune so far. In 2011, the Delhi and Bangalore ...

'' wrote that the WSC has an unspoken rule that does not allow film actors and racing professionals, including jockeys, trainers and their spouses to be individuals as "actors might create a nuisance, with their followers lingering around, and ruin the ambience and peace at the club... What is important is not the profession, but the applicant's background. If the jockey is a syce's son who cannot speak seven words of English, he may be rejected." However, Akshay Khanna and his brother Rahul are members from 2010 onwards. In the 21st century, there was controversy and infighting over the destruction of the badminton courts and the club election process. After the original bar was burned in a fire, the former bakery was turned into the "Pub" that functions as a mini-nightclub on weekends and "Bar Nite" once a month. The former bar is a formal, outside-catered restaurant called the "Golf View Bar" right next to the library on the upper level.

Amenities

The club has an 18-hole golf course (the only private one within the city, the other being the military-only club and another in the suburbs), six tennis courts, ⁣ squash and badminton courts, a health club and a swimming pool. Non-sports amenities include a formal dining room, a semiformal dining room, a bar, a garden café (where children under 21 are allowed), a swimming pool café, a bakery, a plant nursery a members' provision and separate beer and wine shop are available to members at rates cheaper than outside stores as the club is not-for-profit and a mini-grocery store. There is also a pavilion and a patio, as well as facilities to cater for the hosting of members' parties.

Events

A banquet was held at the WSC in 1954 to celebrate the first

Filmfare awards The Filmfare Awards are annual awards that honour artistic and technical excellence in the Indian cinema.Al The Filmfare ceremony is one of the most famous film events in India. The awards were introduced by Filmfare magazine of The Times G ...

ceremony. The event was attended by actor

Gregory Peck Eldred Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003) was an American actor and one of the most popular film stars from the 1940s to the 1970s. In 1999, the American Film Institute named Peck the AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars, 12th-greatest male ...

. One of the award winners,

Bimal Roy Bimal Roy (12 July 1909 – 7 January 1966) was an Indian film director. He is particularly noted for his realistic and socialistic films such as , '' Parineeta'', ''Biraj Bahu'', '' Devdas'', '' Madhumati'', '' Sujata'', '' Parakh'' and '' Ba ...

was not allowed entry into the club for the party as he was dressed in a

dhoti The dhoti is an ankle-length breechcloth, wrapped around the waist and the legs, in resemblance to the shape of trousers. The dhoti is a garment of ethnic wear for men in the Indian subcontinent. The dhoti is fashioned out of a rectangular p ...

References

{{Authority control 1933 establishments in India Sports clubs and teams in Mumbai Sports organizations established in 1933 Organisations based in India with royal patronage

History

Amenities

Events

See also

References