India Club crowdfund sets sights on raising £100k after hitting initial target

By James McAllister

- Last updated on GMT

Image: The India Club
Image: The India Club

Related tags Indian cuisine Restaurant crowdfunding

A crowdfunding campaign set up to help save The India Club in London’s The Strand from closure has surpassed its initial £25,000 target and is now aiming to raise £100,000.

The club launched the crowdfund last month​ after its owners were served with a notice to vacate the premises by its property-developer landlord.

Having hit its initial £25,000 target with 16 days remaining on the crowdfund, the club is now pushing to double that amount; saying it will need to raise at least £50,000 to stay afloat.

It has stretched its final target to £100,000, which includes its estimated total legal fees. 

Any surplus funds or costs recovered will go towards the club’s rent costs.

At the time of writing it has raised £27,804.

Established more than 50 years ago by Krishna Menon, India's first High Commissioner to the UK, with founding members, Lady Mountbatten and Prime Minister Nehru, The India club was a meeting place for leading figures associated with post-independent India.

The club is located in Hotel Strand Continental, and is home to a restaurant and lounge bar whose interior have remain unchanged since the club opened in the 1950s.

Three generations of the same family have run the India Club for over 23 years, from the oldest generation working behind reception to the youngest waitressing.

According to the club, Westminster Council rejected the landlord’s previous redevelopment plans back in 2018 on the basis that losing the India Club would be materially harmful to the cultural provision of the area.

However, it says the landlord has recently served the club with a notice to modernise and run the hotel from the property.

In a recent update, The India Club said: "We are incredibly grateful for the love and support received to help us reach our initial target.

"However, as we begin our legal fight, we need to continue raising more funds to stay afloat in the current economic climate."

To visit the crowdfunding page, click here​.

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