Binoculars on, mud in the air and a rush of adrenaline hoping for the betted horse to win — the familiar scene at the Royal Calcutta Turf Club was visible after a hiatus due to the pandemic at the prestigious 167-year-old Queen Elizabeth-II Cup (Grade III) hosted on February 19. The historic race that covers a distance of 2,800m on the racetrack was completed by horse Parisian that took home the royal cup to the cheers of the onlookers from the gallery. The event coincided with seven more races including cups like the first-time organised Kishore Bhimani Memorial Cup, Malaysia Cup, Philippines Cup and others. Besides the races, a hat competition organised by Rita Bhimani compelled guests to turn up in their fashionable best. Fashion, food, drinks along with unhindered enthusiasm defined the mood of the much-awaited spring event of the city. Snapshots:
THE QUEEN ELIZABETH-II CUP
Horse number one, Parisian, took home the much coveted and historic The Queen Elizabeth-II cup after covering a distance of 2,800m in the race, the maximum distance required to cover in the races.
The British Deputy High Commission in Kolkata, Nick Low (centre), handed over the jewel-studded cup that arrived from Buckingham Palace to jockey P.S. Chouhan (left), who has been in the profession for over 20 years and Shyam Habbu on behalf of trainer P. Shroff and owners Vijay B. Shirke, Jay Shirke, K.N. Dhunjibhoy and Keki D. Mehta.
THE MALAYSIA CUP
Sanjay Budhia (right), honorary consul of Malaysia, handed over The Malaysia Cup to Waahiid Ali Khan, owner of the winning horse Basharat.
THE KISHORE BHIMANI MEMORIAL CUP
The Kishore Bhimani Memorial Cup was organised for the first time in memory of veteran sports journalist and commentator Kishore Bhimani. Devushka, the horse owned by Ajay Jalan and rode by jockey RS Bhati, took home a silver cup handed over by three generations of the Bhimani family (in picture l-r) Kishore Bhimani’s son Gautam, wife Rita, daughter-in-law Rashi and grandson Raag Vansh. “The cup was initiated in memory of my husband, Kishore Bhimani, who was very closely associated with RCTC in many different ways. He was a commentator for more than three decades. We owned horses. He was associated with the club for 40 years and to have our cup on the Queen’s Cup day was very prestigious. Raag was very emotionally involved with his grandfather and he wanted to stay back for this. It was very emotional for us too, as three generations are together. We will make this an annual affair,”said Rita Bhimani, who sported a stylish hat from Abraham & Thakore. “For 30 years, my only association with racing was a day out with Baba. Be it sitting next to him in the commentary box, getting pro tips over a Bloody Mary, or leading in our winning horse Jewel of the East! The memorial cup in his name just underlined his omnipresence at the RCTC,” said Gautam. Raag, who came from his film school to attend the event, said, “I never got to see Dada (grandfather) in action here but I could proudly feel his presence, particularly when I got to go up to the roof-top commentary box from where he had called many races over decades.”
SPOTTED!
The Telegraph spotted Queen’s Cup regulars Pinky Kenworthy with husband Shaun, sharing a fun moment. “This was a hairband that I styled like a hat. It was fun for me to create the look with the glasses and linen dress,” said Pinky.
Madhu Neotia was spotted in an easy-breezy black-and-white kaftan dress, as Rashi looked stylish in a white and yellow ombre dress.
Sivaji Dutt, CEO of Royal Calcutta Turf Club, said, “Along with the Queen’s Cup that happened after the gap of a year, we also had the other consulate cups like Philippines, Portugal, Malaysia, the Kishore Bhimani Memorial Cup on the same day. There were eight races on the Queen’s Cup day. Footfall was not up to what we had expected because of Covid but it was a wonderful event overall. The British consulate was fully represented and the event was attended by various consul generals. It was a big event for us that went off very well.”
HAT-WIN!
The hat competition initiated by Rita Bhimani was judged by Rita and fashion designer Jyotee Khaitan. Each winner received a voucher from Jyotee Khaitan Studio, handed over by British Deputy High Commissioner in Kolkata, Nick Low and wife Carita Low.
Enu Bala who was placed first in the hat competition wore a black hat embellished with feather detailing. “This hat is from Macy’s in New York. It was my daughter’s and she gave it to me. I got it embellished by my Australian stylist friend Sybilla Kahlon,” said Enu.
First from right Leena Jairath
Leena Jairath who got the second place in the competition sported an elaborate black hat. “I borrowed this hat from my friend. I have been visiting the Queen’s Cup for very many years, ever since I got married and look forward to it,” said Leena.
Jyotee Khaitan turned up in a basic summer hat styled with sequins and a light gold ribbon that complemented the prints on her cape outfit from her own label. “It was very nice to attend after a gap of a few years. I used to come earlier but did not attend for a few years in between. I love the positivity and happiness,” said Jyotee.
Rachna Shyam who accessorised her white and blue dress with an embellished white and green hat was placed third. “This is my first time at the Queen’s cup. It was lovely to win the hat competition,” she said.
Pictures: Rashbehari Das