New Delhi, April 11 -- In another life, Chris Bonington was a margarine salesman. Climbing was an affair that had started out in his teens. Yet, the stability of a job brought in more practical considerations. The mountains would have to wait.

In 1962, after making the first British ascent of the North Face of the Eiger alongside Ian Clough, Bonington had settled into the office. It all came to a head later that year when he landed an invitation to climb in Patagonia. But the message from his boss at work was clear-he could either go on the expedition or hold on to his job.

"And I chose to climb," Bonington says, breaking into a smile while sitting easy at the new Himalayan Club office that he inaugurated in Mumbai last month.

Boningto...