91Èȱ¬

Clutching his Bradshaw’s Handbook of Indian, Foreign and Colonial Travel, published in 1913, Michael is en route to Shimla, the former summer seat of the British Raj.

Arriving in the vast cloth market of Ambala, Michael gives his trademark colourful wardrobe an Indian twist. Turning north, he discovers calm amid the commotion of India in the modernist Punjabi state capital, Chandigarh, but the rhythm of bhangra dancing soon has Michael on his feet.

At Kalka, Michael is rewarded with his first glimpse of the Himalayas and boards the mountain railway – built in 1903 - for the spectacular 7,000-feet climb over 60 miles to Shimla.

In the shadow of the Viceregal Lodge, Michael hears how the British governed their empire from this tiny hill town and how the exploits of its social elite earned Shimla a racy reputation - recorded in detail by a young Rudyard Kipling.