An Evening of Fun Mixed with Serious Business - By Mahendra Mallya
Posted on - 04 Mar 2011
An Evening of Fun Mixed with Serious Business
By Mahendra Mallya
The high-profile weekend of racing festivity, The HDIL Indian Turf Invitation Cup and it’s supporting grade-one races, got off the blocks with a little dazzle on Wednesday evening, 2nd March 2011, at the Polo Grounds, at the heart of the famed Mahalaxmi racecourse. High on the agenda, was the draw and declaration of jockeys participating in the ‘big four’ races scheduled for this Saturday and Sunday.
The stage adorned by the new stating gates as a backdrop, looked a beauty and the procedure of selecting the draw by randomly picking the gate number by the connections of the horses themselves, was both, unique and creative. Ms Kristine, the petite belle with a melodious voice, played the ‘starter’ as she opened the proceedings by crooning a heartfelt welcome into the mike. She then invited the Club’s Estate Officer Suhail Mohammed to run through the evening’s ‘card’. A crisp audio visual offered a recap and a foresight into the approaching events of the weekend along with a run-through of the nominations for the Racing Excellence Awards, slated for Saturday night.
The evening was quick to ‘settle down’ as Mr Vivek Jain, Chairman of the Turf Authorities of India, took centre stage and extended a warm welcome to the press, professionals and the guests. A special invitee for the evening was well-known fashion diva, the glamorous Ms Lisa Haydon, looking her sensational best amply adding the ‘Oomph’ factor to the evening. Mr Jain then, in his known eloquent manner, addressed the gathering, rattling off the highlights of the weekend with an admirable flow.
“The MRC opting out of hosting the Indian Turf Invitation Cup races was a blessing in disguise for us in Mumbai. It gave us (RWITC) the opportunity to win the rights to host India’s most prestigious weekend second year running. It is akin to bringing the World Cup to Mumbai,” said Mr Jain. “It is one of the biggest Invitation ever, with over 225 runners and a whopping purse of about Rs 3 crores on offer as stake money. It is the only weekend when four Grade I races will be run over varying distances to crown Champion horses of the country in their respective categories”.
Mr Jain further revealed that if took just one brief meeting with Mr Rakesh Kumar Wadhawan to sign up the Invitation Sponsorship. “The RWITC is most grateful for HDIL’s continued support to racing in western India” continued Mr Jain. Highlighting the keenly awaited Awards ceremony, Mr Jain said, “The Awards Ceremony on Saturday are virtually the Oscars of Indian racing and will be another spectacular razzle-dazzle show, in keeping with the terrific Awards night we hosted last year. A mix of comedy, fashion and film, should ensure a fun filled evening and we expect a full house,” he concluded.
I enjoyed the privilege of sharing the stage with Suhail and we invited the connections of the horses taking part in the Big Four. However, before we started, not being able to withhold my curiosity on the tireless efforts that Mr Jain has visibly put in for the Club, I requested him to return to the stage and “Pray, tell us how”?
Mr Jain, a touch embarrassed, revealed the persistent efforts that goes into marketing and PR. He was humble enough to down play his own contribution of personally putting in relentless work hours, this, besides his family businesses and commitments. He is a 24x7 man with even Sunday not being the usual “time with the family” exception. He shrugged his shoulders when asked if it took toll on his personal/social life saying, “If you have your priorities in place, there is little that can’t be manageable”. The audience heartily applauded, acknowledging the mammoth effort the Chairman undertakes year after year.
The serious business then followed with the connections of the participants invited by turns to pick the gate numbers for their wards. The draw numbers were stuck on the ‘Starting Gate Backdrop’ and one had to peel off the cover and find the draw number displayed for his runner. The names of the Jockeys were announced by Suhail and yours truly, with the chic Ms Lisa Haydon giving away a bag of goodies to the connections, not without flashing her charming smile.
Ms Lisa Haydon candidly admitted that she was new to the nitty-gritty of horseracing. However, she was equally honest to reveal that she smitten by the sport. “I never knew it would be as exciting. The horses are wonderful creatures and I know that they natural athletes. I am fascinated by what I learnt and I can’t wait to see them in action. I am aware that the country’s top notch horses are going to vie each other for supremacy and the anticipation of witnessing the most exciting weekend in horseracing is taking my breath away. I won’t miss it for the world”, she assured.
With the draw of the four races over with, the evening further opened out to lip-smacking dinner, laid out especially for the occasion by Joss. The bar-men were busy from earlier on as cocktails and preferred spirits were flowing freely all through the evening. The well known retro band ‘The Other People’ played a mixture of old hits and some lilting tunes to add to the exotic ambience of the sprawling racecourse arena.
It was an altogether enjoyable evening and with all the pre-race formalities done with, the focus now shifts to the un-rehearsed action to unfold, where the best of the racehorses from across the country limber up to take on one another for the race of their lives. The competition is fierce, the fields attractive and the equine athletes, minutely fine-tuned. The ground work is crafted and complete, very soon we shall discover who the champions are that stand their ground! This weekend, at the Mahalaxmi racecourse!
