Scindia family horse-trainer pens down his memoirs - By Usman Rangeela I Mirror
Posted on - 29 Nov 2011
Scindia family horse-trainer pens down his memoirs
By Usman Rangeela
Mumbai Mirror
While sifting through the daily invites received from the journalists association (Patrakar Sangh) for local functions, an otherwise inconspicuous invitation caught my attention mainly because it mentioned Jyotiraditya Scindia, scion of the Gwalior’s Scindia family.
What came as a pleasant surprise then was to learn that Jyotiraditya would be releasing of late Major VM Lad’s memoirs penned by his granddaughter Sunita Lad-Bhambre. The author couldn’t have made a better decision other than have the book - Triumphs on the Turf — Life of Major VM Lad, released at the hands of Jyotiraditya, the grandson of Jiwajirao Scindia for whom Lad trained exclusively for over four decades.
The book-launch became a private affair with only the Lad family members and their close friends in attendance. Representing the racing fraternity were Dady Adenwalla, Saeed Shah, Dinku Chenoy (trainer Bezan Chenoy’s father), Dr Farokh Wadia and Zavaray Poonawalla, who shared a long association with Lad.
Jyotiraditya, accompanied by his wife and daughter, charmed the audience and was mindful of tucking away the politician in him for a while.
Dady Adenwalla, Dr Kunchur, Dr Farokh Wadia and Dinku Chinoy at the book release
THE JOURNEY
Lad’s journey as a horse-trainer started in 1944. Interestingly, as the book reveals, Lad’s appointment to train horses exclusively for Jiwajirao came about after late Aziz Mahmoud and the late Major KP Jadhav (trainer MK Jadhav’s father) left abruptly after a two-year stint each with the Maharaja’s horses. Lad took up the daunting task of training horses for the royal family and stayed at the helm till he surrendered his training license in 1986.
What prompted Lad to give up the trade was the waning interest of the Scindia family in the sport a decade after the Jiwajirao’s demise in 1961 but the decision of both Vijayraje Scindia and Madhavrao Scindia to become full-time politicians was the turning point in his career. The eventual sale of the Manjri Stud Farm to Pallonji Mistry in mid ‘80’s finally signalled the end of the Gwalior family’s association with horse-racing.
INTERESTING INSIGHT
The book derives most of its content from Lad’s Marathi biography — Ashwavanchya Vishwat Sattar Varsh (Seventy years in the world of horses) which Sunita has relied upon. Lad embarks on a nostalgic journey and clearly wants to express his gratitude to the Scindias believing that his destiny as a horse-trainer was written by Jiwajirao.
The book offers the reader a rare insight into the world of horse-racing during the days of the Maharajas and how it was not money or gambling that mattered to the owners and the professionals. Lad relives the ecstatic memories of Jiwajirao’s passion for horses, the exclusive racing stables he built at the sprawling Padma Vilas Palace in Wanawadi (Pune) as also his three Derby winners.
Some tips for those who would like to read this book: Don’t expect the racy style of Dick Francis and you won’t be disappointed. Lad’s narration is simple and comes straight from the heart. But be prepared to excuse the typos that have crept in due to poor translation from Marathi.
Regardless, if you want to know why Jiwajirao was also known as George; about trainer Janardhan’s association with the 1943 Derby winner Star of Gwalior; who were the best Indian riders and the best Indian trainer according to Lad; more importantly if you love horseracing ardently then go and buy this book now.
