Sunday Feature - Footfalls rise after racing scene goes glam with entertainment I TNN
Posted on - 03 Aug 2014
Sunday Feature - Footfalls rise after racing scene goes glam with entertainment
Pune
Times News Network
Pune: The city's age-old sporting event, horseracing, is slowly transforming into a lifestyle and leisure getaway , attracting not just racing aficionados, but also those who are drawn by the entertainment and glamour. Live music bands, dance, international performances and fashion shows, among others are slowly gracing the racing arena, turning it into a lifestyle game.
Addressing a news conference here on Saturday Vivek Jain, chairman of the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC), said that the club has been looking to transform the hardcore sport of horse racing into a `lifestyle sport' over the last few years.
“We are trying to turn the races into the next entertainment destination, as hardcore racing enthusiasts will come and witness the races irrespective of whether or not it involves entertainment and glamour. We are trying to attract casual visitors, who are not that much into sport but would love to explore its glamorous aspect. Racing has a huge glamour potential and if this stratum is kept out, it may soon lose the potential,” Jain said.
The turf club authorities have infused and even notched up the glamour quotient here with live music bands, the Oktoberfest, singers on board, food courts, bar nights and other events. International performances like the African acrobats and Russian quick change artistes have also made an appearance here in the past, highlighting the sport’s leisure avatar. The Oktoberfest is one such event that tantalizes many with its charms, for it brings alive the essence of the German-styled Munich Festival with the quintessential Wheat and Dark beers, Bratwurst (traditional German sausages especially flown in from Germany) and potato salad.
“A day at the races is not what it used to be as it now has food, fun and leisure all packed into it. That is one reason why Mumbai and Pune races have a cumulative attendance of one million over a year,” said Jain.
Every year, on the Southern Command Trophy race day, the Southern Command brings in something special for the audience, like the army band. The Army combat display at the races was one such attraction about two years ago, when personnel from the Indian Army recreated a war-like situation and displayed military combat skills.
The club authorities are also going easy on the dress code at the races, metamorphosing it into that one leisure sport where one could not only enjoy a beautiful game uniting man and animal, but also some of the finest entertainment classics on a single stage.
