The Villoo C Poonawalla Indian Derby promises a gripping showdown between top contenders Fynbos and Baychimo, with owners KN Dhunjibhoy and Shiven Surendranath carrying contrasting histories and emotions into Sunday’s marquee race at Mahalaxmi
Co-owner of Fynbos, KN Dhunjibhoy and Co-owner of Baychimo, Shiven Surendranath
“In the end, no one really knows which horse will win — certainly not the owner,” Robert Morley’s famous quote must be weighing heavy on the minds of at least two horse owners in the Indian Derby fray — KN Dhunjibhoy and Shiven Surendranath.
They own, along with friends, the top two horses running in Sunday’s Villoo C Poonawalla Indian Derby (Gr 1) at the Mahalaxmi racetrack — the Pesi Shroff-trained Fynbos and the Adhirajsingh-trained Baychimo.
“I’m very nervous at the moment,” KN Dhunjibhoy told mid-day on Wednesday, before laughing aloud, “certainly much more nervous than my filly Fynbos, who will do the actual running. You can say I’m already having butterflies in my stomach.”
Dhunjibhoy has reason to feel anxious as many of his horses have finished runner-up in the Indian Derby. “I have lost more Indian Derby races than I have won. A long list of my horses have finished second — a clear case of seconditis,” he added. After opening his Indian Derby account with Indictment in 1997, Dhunjibhoy had to wait for 25 years to win the race again in his own silks. In that quarter of a century, his horses finished second on four occasions — Zurbaran (2003), Estonia (2004), Frida Kahlo (2005) and Sergeant At Arms (2017), before Zuccarelli broke the jinx in 2022 to go one better. Understandably, Dhunjibhoy is leaving no stone unturned to enable Fynbos to put her best foot forward. He is importing jockey Tom Marquand from England to ride her on Sunday.
Comparatively, Shiven Surendranath, in whose colours Baychimo runs, is almost an upstart. His Velvet Rope caused one of the biggest upsets in Derby history in 2006. After two decades, Surendranath has a horse in the Derby fray, Baychimo, who is a top contender. Will lightning strike twice in the same spot after 20 years? “Baychimo is a lovely horse. You will fall in love with him if you spend even a minute in his company,” Shiven told mid-day. “I have led in a Derby winner once, but trust me this Sunday I will not be thinking about myself — I want Baychimo to win for his own sake,” added an emotional Shiven. Baychimo will be ridden by Indian champion Suraj Narredu, who has an insatiable hunger for winners despite riding over 2500 of them.
Clearly, a lot more than mere reputation will be riding on Fynbos and Baychimo this Sunday.
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