The first ever Indian Derby run in 1943 was won by H.H. The Maharaja Pratapsinh Gaekwar of Baroda with Princess Beautiful. The following year, H.H. The Maharaja Jiwajirao Scindia of Gwalior won as Deepak, trained by Maj. K.P. Jadhav, came home the winner. Then, it was the turn of H.H. The Maharajadhiraj Hari Singh of Jammu and Kashmir to lift the trophy with Odds On. By the time we come to the start of the 1955-56 winter season at Mumbai, both Baroda and Kashmir had added to their Classic tallies; Gwalior, however, had failed to win even a single Classic after Deepak's victory.

Henry Weysford Charles Plantagenet Rawdon Hastings, the 4th Marquess of Hastings grieved with the words, "Hermit's Derby broke my heart. But I didn't show it, did I ?" Rough Deal's Indian Derby in 1955 surely broke Maharaja of Morvi's heart -- he had sold the winner to Kashmir much against the wishes of his trainer Talib -- and though he, too, did not show it, his actions did. By the end of Poona season of 1955, Morvi had sold most of his formidable and sizeable string and was left with just one horse. That was Alam-E-Hind, a Jindani colt bred at Bhopal Stud. Alam-E-Hind, trained by Talib, won four of his six starts at Bombay in 1954-55 and stamped himself as the most promising juvenile of the 1952 crop. As usual in those days, the Talib youngsters were very much to the fore.  Tisco II, a Jindani half-brother to 1000-Oaks double winner Tosca, had won three races and the Gazdar filly Neolight two; both were trained by Talib. Then there was Mr. T.N. Banerjea's Tarbule whose two wins included one over Alam-E-Hind and Baba Khan's Noble Way who also had two brackets against his name. The other youngster with two wins was Miss P.P. Dalal's filly Cassandra bred at Yeravada Stud. By a strange coincidence, none of the leading lights of the young brigade raced during the monsoons at Pune except Cassandra who failed to place in her two starts.

Away from the limelight, the Gwalior stable was quietly hopeful abut the chances of an attractive colt from their new stallion Hyder Ali's first crop. The colt was a half-brother to Khan Saheb and Chhote Khan who were already standing as stallions at Manjri Stud. It was obvious that the colt, named Star of Gwalior, was very athletic and a lovely mover. He, however, was badly affected by sore shins and his trainer Maj Lad was unable to get much work into him. He had just two starts in Bombay. In mid-January he was comfortably beaten by Alam-E-Hind and on Rough Deal's Derby day he was only fifth as an odds-on favourite in the race won by Tisco II where Noble Way ran third. Wondering whether it was an exercise in futility to take on Talib-trained youngsters, Maj Lad had Star of Gwalior blistered and put away for Poona. In August, Star of Gwalior won his first race under Kasbekar by eight lengths. He was an on-money favourite and what he beat was fairly ordinary. Maj Lad was not unduly impressed but as the horse was being unsaddled, Mr. A.C. Ardeshir, the Chairman of R.W.I.T.C., congratulated him and said that he had just seen the winner of the next Derby.

In Bombay, things didn't pan out as per expectations. Star of Gwalior appeared early in December over a mile and was a half-money favourite. He twice dropped Egan before the field was dispatched and though he led the field opposite the First Enclosure, he went down tamely to Mr. Ramnath Daga's  filly Ushakal and his own bracket-mate Magic Carpet pipped him for the second spot. Maj Lad was disappointed but two things made him still nurse his hopes. One was that Egan told him that the colt had felt his legs. The other was Ushakal running a close second to Neolight in the Indian 1000 Guineas. That made the trainer let Star of Gwalior have his chance in the Indian 2000 Guineas. Kashmir's Noble Way won the race by a short-head from Tarbule with Alam-E-Hind third. Star of Gwalior was slowly off and finished in the ruck. Disappointment was tempered by the fact that for the first time he came out of race without feeling his legs.

On New Year's day, Star of Gwalior won the Montgomery Plate over 7 furlongs with ease, making all the running. Following Sunday, he was out for the Sir H.M. Mehta Gold Cup  -- the fore-runner of  the present day R.R. Ruia Cup -- over 10 furlongs. Getting slowly away from the gates was becoming a habit with Star of Gwalior. However, he improved gradually, led the field coming into the straight and held the advantage till below the distance before bowing out as Alam-E-Hind (Khade), Noble Way (Ahmed Khan) and Tarbule (Eldin) fought out a keen finish, a length covering the trio at the winning post.

Bombay of January 1956 was not the usual Bombay. Wayside Inn at Kala Ghoda was still filled with legal luminaries from the High Court at lunch time; Azad Maidan and Cross Maidan had as many cricket matches going on as could be fitted in while Metro, Regal and Eros did not have empty seats for daytime shows. Yet, there was a tension beneath the air. The Sanyukta Maharashtra Andolan, a movement for a separate Marathi speaking state inclusive of Bombay city, was raging; there had been protests, tear gas, even firing and the curfew had been imposed in places. It intensified in mid-January and a day's racing had to be cancelled. In the re-arranged programme, the Indian Derby was postponed by a week. Maj Lad reckoned that the postponement worked to Star of Gwalior's advantage as it gave him a longer rest after two races within a week in early January. It also spelt the end of Tarbule for the colt cracked a hoof towards the end of January and was out of the Derby.

An early winner on a Derby Day boosts the stable confidence and Talib had one a long odds through Twilight while Gwalior's 'got-abroad' youngster  Mukhtar-ul-Mulk completed a stylish hat-trick at cramped odds.  A dozen runners paraded in the paddock for Indian Derby on 12 February and Noble Way, confidently expected to reverse the Sir H.M. Mehta Gold Cup placing, was the favourite at 6/4. The Talib pair of Alam-E-Hind (3/1) and the dual Classic winner Neolight (4/1) had their supporters but the rest of the field was in double figures. The no-hoper Pritum, a 'got-abroad' colt owned Mr. Ramnath Daga, streaked away to the front and scorched the turf. Neither Sunny Way (Jagdish) nor Magic Carpet (Kasbekar), the pacemakers for Noble Way and Star of Gwalior respectively, could get near him. Kasbekar gave up while Jagdish persevered to get Sunny Way within hailing distance of Pritum just before the bend but couldn't pass him. Ahmed Khan had his predicament and moved Noble Way closer to the pace than he would have wanted to. Third behind Pritum and Sunny Way coming to the bend, he was second into the straight, decided to take the bull by the horns and took the lead coming to the First Enclosure. All this while, Star of Gwalior, slowly off as usual, was improving his position by one place every furlong and he had a definite target in front as he went after Noble Way. Riding vigorously, but only hands and heels, Egan caught Noble Way approaching the Members' Enclosure and the two of them fought it out right till the line. A photo was called for and Star of Gwalior was declared the winner by a head. Barring jubilation in the Gwalior camp, there was a stunned silence at Mahalakshmi. Neolight finished third while the other Talib runner Alam-E-Hind was fourth. It was just as well that the City's agitative mood had not percolated on to the race course.

A 20/1 winner is not often considered a good winner. The fact is that Star of Gwalior beat Noble Way, the winner of Indian 2000 Guineas, Neolight who had bagged the Fillies' Double and Alam-E-Hind, the winner of Sir H.M. Mehta Gold Cup, the recognized Derby Trial. He franked the Derby form in the Indian St. Leger on 10 March. Magic Carpet couldn't match strides with Noble Way's pacemaker Sunny Way and this time Egan rode a more forward race, moving up early after a sluggish start and taking charge soon after coming into the final stretch and winning by two and a half lengths from Noble Way who had a troubled passage in the straight with tired horses hindering his way. Neolight was again third. In the St. Leger, Star of Gwalior finished further ahead of both Noble Way and Neolight than he had in the Derby.That was Star of Gwalior's last race for he was retired to Manjri Stud to stand alongside his sire.

This was the first Classic win for Maj Lad who saddled 16 winners of Indian Classics in a career which spanned nearly four decades. It is a remarkable achievement because he trained only for the Gwalior family. He was to saddle Indian Derby winners Alijah (1961) and Rose Royal (1965) later. In 1956, Bombay won the Ranji Trophy and started an amazing streak that saw them win it consecutively for the next 14 years. Star of Gwalior did something similar for Manjri Stud and the Gwalior stable. Manjri Stud bred winners of 25 Indian Classics, including seven Indian Derbies, in the next 17 years. John Robert Egan, always called Jack, was in his first season with the Gwalior stable when he won on Star of Gwalior. Trainer Sam Armstrong, lodged in the St. Gatien stables in Newmarket, had a reputation of being something in a class of his own as a trainer of big handicap winners, sprinters and apprentices. Willie Carson, Egan, Willie Snaith -- astride Gwalior's Nanda Deep's Guineas Double wins -- and P. Tulk were some of the young jockeys that he brought up. Egan had ridden earlier in India at Madras and Calcutta and being retained by the Gwalior yard should have sent his career zooming upwards. Unfortunately, his addiction to the amber liquid and his failures on Mukhtar-ul-Mulk next year meant that he was sacked by Gwalior in 1957. He then went to Scandinavia and rode successfully there for a number of years. Star of Gwalior (Egan) and Rose Royal (F. Durr) were Maj Lad's first and last Indian Derby winners. Egan and Durr were married to the Haley sisters, daughters of National Hunt trainer J. Haley.

H.H. The Maharaja Jiwajirao Scindia of Gwalior -- "George" to his peers -- came into racing in the latter half of 1930s and his first ambition was to win the Eclipse Stakes of India. With this in mind, he imported a horse called Finalist from England. Finalist never won the Eclipse but gave the Maharaja four successes in the Viceroy's Cup ! He did win the Eclipse eventually, though, with Radio Man. He won the Indian Derby with Deepak (1944), Star of Gwalior (1956) and Alijah (1961). Chand Bibi (Indian 1000 Guineas), Rais-ud-Daula (Indian St. Leger) and Alijah (Indian 2000 Guineas) were the other Indian Classic winners to carry his distinctive terracotta, light blue sleeves and cap colours. Rarely seen without a cigarette in his hand and a diabetic, he passed away in Bombay on 16 July 1961 at the young age of 45. His wife, Rajmata Vijaya Raje Scindia continued the racing tradition of the family till her son Mr. Madhavrao Scindia was old enough to take over. Increasing political involvement meant that Mr. Scindia gradually reduced his racing interests and the Manjri Stud was sold in mid-1980s.

PAST THE POST

Philosopher (Sheridan - Philomel), who stood at Renala Stud, was the first Indian-bred stallion to sire a Classic winner and he did that with Gamble For Love who won the first three Indian Classics in 1949-50 and Mansoor Beg, the Indian Derby winner of that year. The most successful Indian stallion of all time is Prince Pradeep but he was a 'got-abroad'. So the mantle of being the most successful stallion who was conceived and born in India falls on Star of Gwalior. He sired eight Classic winners who won 11 Classics between them while six of his daughters produced Classic winners of 11 Classics. He is also the only Indian-bred stallion to sire an Indian Triple Crown winner (Loyal Manzar).

The strange anathema against Indian-bred stallions among the breeders has led to our having successful Indian families but no male-line of any significance. For a while, though, during the period when imports were non-existent or pitifully small in numbers, the Hyder Ali male-line held sway. Hyder Ali sired Star of Gwalior who in turn got Loyal Manzar whose son Loyal Prince won Indian Turf Invitation Cup. Loyal Prince begat the Indian 2000 Guineas winner Sea Mist. Another notable branch was Hyder Ali- Star of Gwalior-Jaandaar-Aztec.  Jaandaar and Aztec were not Classic winners but very high class horses. Aztec sired the Classic winning filly Misty Melody at Calcutta.

Hyder Ali, a full-brother to the successful American sire Khaled, was a small, neat horse. Star of Gwalior was not much bigger and Maj Lad described him as having "tremendous strength and swiftness". As a youngster, his sore shins prevented Maj Lad from getting enough work into him and the unspent energy resulted in his being playful. He enjoyed nothing more than turfing whoever mounted him ! He was however, according to Maj Lad, a basically gentle horse. Hyder Ali and Star of Gwalior shared one other characteristic. They were both averse to a stomach tube and would never take one.