The western India railbird waits for the Pune monsoon racing season as eagerly as the mythical Chataka bird does for the first raindrop from the skies. The wait is finally over as the Pune monsoon racetrack gets ready to take the pounding of horse hooves for the next four months. 

This Friday (July 17), the Pune racecourse will spring back to life, and play host to 30 professional horse trainers and more than 50 jockeys, who will parade their skills in training and riding more than 800 horses, of which nearly 280 will be two-year-old juveniles, looking forward to make their debut.