Guyanese labourer’s daughter Aruna Sukhdeo is Miss India Worldwide 2023

obody in her family had been into the sport or ridden horses, but her mum, who was a national-level track athlete, was an early inspiration. Ananya would listen to her mum's stories and wonder what it would feel like to compete at a national level. She would watch equestrian events on TV too, and remembers watching the Olympics over and over. "The way Charlotte Dujardin and Carl Hester was mesmerising to me. They were the equestrians I looked up to the most growing up."

When she was nine, the family moved to Hyderabad, where Ananya began riding consistently. She started at the Hyderabad Polo and Riding Club but soon switched to Nasr Polo, where she competed at my first show at HRPC under Nasr.

[caption id="attachment_36295" align="aligncenter" width="614"] Teen equestrian Ananya Settipalli[/caption]

Training with KCS Reddy

She moved back to the Hyderabad Polo and Riding Club to train under Hyderabad's only competitive coach at the time, KCS Reddy. "His methods of training were quite different from others," Ananya recalls. She learned her basics on retired thoroughbreds (ex-racehorses), which can be very challenging to ride compared to the more traditional, docile warmbloods. "I learned most things related to riding the hard way. With off-track thoroughbreds, you have to control every action you make when you're on them," she says.

It was a challenging way to learn. At Nasr Polo, the polo horses were well-trained and easy to handle. The ones at HRPC, however, were fresh off the race course and had received a few months of training from KCS Reddy and his assistant. "It was a rough experience since the horses were so green, but I wouldn't trade it for any other," Ananya says, adding with a smile, "And if I hadn't, I wouldn't have met Princess."

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Meeting 'Princess'

On her 12th birthday, Ananya got her first horse, Princess, as a present. When she rode her for the first time, Princess, who was “as grumpy as a mare could get,” threw her off right away, leaving Ananya with a concussion and “a giant red mark” on her face.” A few months later, when Ananya was at her first show, Princess threw her again, and this time, she fractured her arm. "Nobody thought I would come back to riding. Nobody thought I would keep Princess. But I did both because the most important thing to understand with a horse is that it's never their fault," she says. Instead, Ananya learned patience, and began building a real relationship with the horse she would soon call her best friend. She would head to the stables at 5 am and spend three hours with Princess before school. "It was the best experience I ever had. On weekends, I would spend the first half of the day with her, I would bathe her, hand graze her, groom her and just sit in her stall to spend time with her. She was very sensitive but she just needed some love and a girl who had all the love in the world to offer to her." Their bond only grew, and ultimately, Ananya went on to qualify for the nationals riding Princess.

Competing in India

By this time, Ananya was going back and forth between Hyderabad and Bengaluru, where she was now training under Ashish Limaye at the Embassy International Riding School. She rode with Limaye to try horses to compete in her first Equestrian Premier League at the Embassy to qualify for the nationals. "I loved the place immediately," she said. "They had incredible facilities; everything was so well organised and everyone was extremely friendly and the horses were well taken care of." At the Embassy, she was also looking for horses to ride at the EPLs and ended up riding four, three of which came from the Embassy: Qurt, Dejavu, and Obligado. The fourth was a mare named Zala, whom she leased from the United Rider barn.

Her most special bond, however, was with Obligado, who was around 20 years old when she began riding him. "He's a thoroughbred but he could jump the 130s with ease and even when he was 19, he could jump the 115 cm classes without breaking a sweat. When I first rode him I barely knew how to jump. I couldn't even get around a course without falling off but he's an angel. He rarely misbehaved and taught me the basics of jumping."

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By this time, the pandemic had hit. However, the Embassy allowed Ashish Limaye's students to stay at the riding school and continue to train. Ananya, her friends, and Ashish lived at the school for six months. "He was the most influential coach I had the opportunity to train with," Ananya says. They would ride in the morning, go to school, ride again after, and in keeping with Ashish's rule for his students, work out after riding. "Under Ashish, I competed at two Junior National Equestrian Championships in India," she says.

[caption id="attachment_36301" align="aligncenter" width="426"] Ananya Settipalli with Ashish Limaye at the Embassy International Riding School[/caption]

Back to the US

In a stroke of bad luck, Ananya came down with a fairly severe case of Covid 19 in 2020. At this point, her parents decided to go back to the US, this time to Texas, partly for the good schools and also because they had found Ananya a great coach, Kai Handt.

In 2021, Ananya began riding under Handt, who is also one of the top coaches in the US for para-equestrians, at the North Texas Equestrian Center. Then, in 2022, she bought her current horse from Kai, NTEC Classico, a seven-year-old gelding "with impeccable breeding lines and amazing scope in jumping and dressage," Ananya says. That year, she competed at her first regional championship in 2022.

She attended her second regionals in 2023, this time on another of Kai Handt's best horses, the NTEC Falstaff. This time, the idea was to qualify for the United States Dressage Finals. They qualified and made it to the event in Lexington, Kentucky.

A different ecosystem

Being an equestrian in the US, Ananya says, is a very different experience from being one in India. For starters, the average level is much higher - the best riders in India struggle to even qualify when they first arrive in Germany or the US. "It's much more competitive in the US because it's a much more popular sport," she says. Shows also work differently and it took some adjusting to at first.

"After I bought NTEC Classico, it became easier because consistency is key. Having a horse to ride five days a week definitely helps when you compete with that same horse." Another difference is that riders in the US are expected to do a lot more for their horses. "In India, in HRPC and Embassy, they would know what time I would be there and have the horses ready to ride and take care of them afterward. But in America, at most barns, you tack up your own horse, untack them, and take care of them when you're done riding," Ananya explains. "It's a very different experience, but I like taking care of my horse better because it allows you to build a connection with them."

[caption id="attachment_36294" align="aligncenter" width="492"] Ananya and her father, with NTEC Classico[/caption]

The ties that bind

In dressage, a strong bond between horse and rider is key, where everything is about trust, respect, empathy, and teamwork. That's why Ananya focusses on spending consistent time with her horse, not just during the training but also by doing everyday activities like grooming and so on. "Communication is huge, I try to be clear and consistent with my cues so my horse knows what I'm asking for and I make sure to give plenty of praise and maybe a treat here and there." There are challenges of course, as with any relationship. "But I've learned to approach them with patience and understanding. It's not just about winning ribbons in the arena; it's about having a true partnership with your horse."

Ananya hopes to keep winning but says it's more than just about accolades. "It's about deepening my understanding of horses and enriching their lives through thoughtful training and care." She also wants to continue training, saying, "I aim to compete at higher level competitions and hopefully international ones as well."