When jockey A Sandesh steered the Darius Byramji-trained Ranquelino past the post in a hard-fought win at the Indian Derby on Sunday, eliciting a roar from the Mahalaxmi crowd, the noise and pulsating excitement carried all the way to the red-mud hill station of Matheran.
A Sandesh, son of Matheran ghodawala Tukaram Akhade, joined the legion of Matheran riding champions led by the legendary Vasant Shinde. All these men grew up with horses, their trot beating a tattoo on their hearts, understanding equines like few ever will. Horses are the lifeblood and livelihood of many in one of the most popular getaways for Mumbaikars, known for its red mud, monkeys, and, of course, ponies on its pathways.
Sandesh as a little boy at the Woodlands bungalow in Matheran
Adil Gandhy, who once led the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) Apprentice Jockey School, is a horseman par excellence, having won numerous Gymkhana (amateur) races. He is also the quintessential Mumbai-Matheran man, dividing his time between the metropolis and the car-free getaway. He has witnessed ghodawala’s sons—and sometimes the ghodawalas themselves—move up from giving joyrides to excited, eager-beaver tourists (a highlight of most Matheran visits) to becoming champion jockeys themselves.
Past the post at the Derby at Mahalaxmi on Sunday. Pics/Ashish Raje
Gandhy recalled, “As a little boy, A Sandesh used to come to our family bungalow, ‘Woodlands,’ in Matheran with his father. He was astride a horse called Oscar. Sandesh’s father used to tell me in Marathi: ‘Baba la jockey banav, please baba la jockey banav’ (please make him a jockey). On one of Sandesh’s visits with his father to our Matheran bungalow, we had a German guest, a friend of my sister. His name was Tilo Waldraff, and he was a professional equestrian and horseman. He actually gave Sandesh, who was just a little boy then, a riding lesson in the bungalow compound. It was a half-hour lesson on how to hold the reins, where to place the leg—all that kind of stuff. Tilo will be absolutely thrilled when he hears and sees the pictures of Sandesh, that little boy from our bungalow compound, winning the Indian Derby.”
Sandesh bends to take Adil Gandhy’s blessings after the Derby win
A Sandesh said, “My parents were in the Mahalaxmi stands witnessing my Derby win. I also met one of my mentors, I Nathani, after the race. I think Matheran churns out top jockeys because we, the Matheran boys, literally grow up with horses. We feel one with these four-legged, fabulous creatures at a very young age. It is important to be comfortable and confident around the animal, and that comes from being with horses since childhood.
I hear that the Matheran locals are delighted with my win, but I am even happier that I made the people of the hill station, where I have my roots, elated with my Derby victory.”
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