5 min readMumbaiMar 19, 2023 03:09 PM IST
First published on: Mar 12, 2023 at 10:15 PM IST
For once, as people jostled for a good look and the more ambitious ones among the crowd jumped the barricades, the lone security guard stationed at the gate of Mannat allowed himself the rare luxury of sitting down on a plastic stool.
The thousands of people who had made a beeline to Bandra Bandstand, were not there for a glimpse of Shah Rukh Khan. For once, eyes and smartphones were staring seawards, away from the sprawling residence of the Bollywood superstar: the Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Road, popular in the city as Bandra Bandstand, was hosting the Red Bull Showrun, where former Formula 1 driver David Coulthard was scorching the street in an RB7.
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“This is rare,” the security guard muttered in relief, not about the sight of a Formula 1 car driving down on Bandstand, but the lack of attention the most famous address in the country was getting. Down the BJ Road, the other famous Bollywood landmark, Salman Khan’s residence at Galaxy Apartment, was experiencing the same fate.
As morning grew into afternoon, the roar of engines ruled the streets of the tony western suburb of Mumbai and people clambered onto anything they could find for a better look. Those who couldn’t find a good enough spot wandered along the HK Bhaba Road, that is separated from the promenade by buildings, and tried to listen to the sounds of purring engines and guess if the show had started.
Those who couldn’t find a good enough spot along the Bandra Bandstand wandered along the HK Bhaba Road and tried to catch a glimpse of the action from between gaps in buildings. (Photo: Amit Kamath)
When the show did start, for nearly three hours, Coulthard, who won 13 F1 races in his career, held captive the thousands of people braving the unforgiving heat. In a sport where race day passes can be eye-wateringly costly, thousands turned up to catch a glimpse of an actual F1 car, that too for free (for most people who were watching from the general access zones, access along the showrun track was free).
Roars went up as Coulthard pressed his car into doing donuts and burnouts. As he vroomed past the scores of Instagram and YouTube-video makers, jokes were made about needing to watch the clips in slow-mo just to catch a glimpse of the car and the man in it.
Fans clambered onto anything they could find for a better look of the action. (Photo: Amit Kamath)
The RB7 is an all-conquering car so powerful that in the 2011 season it helped the Red Bull team claim 18 out of 19 poles and win 12 races, in what was a dominant season capped by Sebastian Vettel claiming the world championship crown and the team winning the Constructors’ Championship. But the afternoon heat of Mumbai, with temperatures tickling 36-degree Celsius, proved too much for the car in the end of what was scheduled to be the British driver’s last lap: as he pushed the RB7 into one last set of burnouts which sent plumes of smoke swirling into the air, small flames erupted out of the car.
Two technicians spray the RB7 driven by David Coulthard with extinguishers. (Photo: Red Bull)
Despite the tiny fire, Coulthard ended the performance with panache usually reserved for Bollywood stars. As two technicians rushed forward and sprayed extinguishers, the Brit leapt out of the car surrounded by smoke from the burnouts, with a wave to the crowd which burst into a chorus of his name.
“I’m sorry the laps were so short, but it’s so hot out here,” he said into the microphone to more chants of his name.
Soon, someone handed him an Indian flag. The last time he was in India, for a show run in Hyderabad eight years back, Coulthard had needed to apologise when the Tricolour had accidentally fallen by his feet. This time, he carried it around like it was a part of him as he walked around the showrun track offering high fives to anyone inside arm’s length. Finally, a car was brought out to take Coulthard for one last spin on the Bandra promenade. He sat on the door, his upper body outside the car and the Tricolour still fluttering.
David Coulthard does a lap of the track after the Red Bull Showrun was over (left); Many young fans were spotted along the track. (Photos: Amit Kamath)
Several blinks of an eye later, he was gone. For the guards outside Mannat, it was time to get back to business.
David Coulthard performs donuts and burnouts in the RB7 for the crowd at Bandra Bandstand during the Red Bull Showrun. (Photo: Red Bull) 
Those who couldn’t find a good enough spot along the Bandra Bandstand wandered along the HK Bhaba Road and tried to catch a glimpse of the action from between gaps in buildings. (Photo: Amit Kamath)
Fans clambered onto anything they could find for a better look of the action. (Photo: Amit Kamath)
Two technicians spray the RB7 driven by David Coulthard with extinguishers. (Photo: Red Bull)
David Coulthard does a lap of the track after the Red Bull Showrun was over (left); Many young fans were spotted along the track. (Photos: Amit Kamath)
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