Picking up from where we left off last week on WW2 and Delhi, here is a guidebook for American soldiers in Indian cities published by the American Red Cross. The Red Cross Guide was given to servicemen who were largely unfamiliar with India and significantly, its preface makes clear that Americans should respect Indian customs, however different they may seem. Whether this held out in practice, this was the official line taken by the American authorities for those arriving in place such as Delhi.
As I mentioned last week, cities like Delhi were transformed during the war and the needs of allied servicemen and women were instrumental in this process. If you look at the scan from the guide below, it mentions ‘Canteens and Restaurants’ for example, that were recommended for American soldiers. These would have likely seen an uptick in their business (Wengers and India Coffee House continue to remain popular to this day). The reason being that Americans were well paid (better than British soldiers) and with more disposable income they were on the lookout for new haunts and activities. Indian businesses were of course, ready for the challenge.
Now, this is not to say that British personnel, of whom there were also a lot in Delhi, didn’t spend on such wartime pursuits. I’ve also got a page from the British Royal Air Force’s ‘Astra’ magazine in 1945, which carries advertisements from similar places as mentioned above (Astra was a dedicated magazine for the RAF signals centre in Delhi during the war. However, more on this another time). You can see Wenger and Co’s advertisement below and so it is quite clear that the British market continued to be a viable one for Delhi’s businesses.
Anyway, this is it for me until next week. See you on Friday.
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