1 pm to 6 pm Horses are Revaz Martin 's calling. The bond between her and her horses is unquestionable. Though her job is to teach horse riding at the Royal Calcutta Turf Club, she remains almost constantly on duty with the 42 horses and 13 ponies at the RCTC riding school. Revaz is everyone's favourite 'dada' (read 'bhai') at the RCTC. And her professionalism, body language and helpful nature made us feel the same.Revaz has an old bond with the RCTC. Her dad started working as a clerk of the course and ended as the CEO (1959-93). "Racing is in my blood. I have grown up with the horses. My grandmother used to ride side saddle as well as astride. But she had never had a professional course. I will not say that I know everything, but I am learning every day. Officially, my hours are, but need be I stay late or come early. My husband (Bryan) also comes from an animal crazy family but not as crazy as us! But having me as a life partner he had no way out but to join the herd," she said.For Revaz, teaching in the riding school wasn't the first thing on her mind initially. The mother of two, and a resident of Rajarhat revealed to us how she was persuaded to take up the job of riding school trainer by the club authorities."I moved to Mussouri with my husband in 1991. We were teaching there. We returned to Kolkata in 2011. When the RCTC got to know about my arrival, they called me up," she said. "First, I said 'no'. But, they said that if you decline then they would have to shut down the school, and shutting it means these animals would go homeless which is something I could never allow. So, they were pretty sure that this trick would work. I thought about the offer at home and my husband told me, 'See you are a teacher and an animal lover. Here you're getting horses and also students to teach riding. It's a win-win situation for you.'" People now tell me, don't say you are doing a job, you are actually following your dream."The Martins , who met each other at St James school , are totally in love with the club's horses, ponies and the kids who come in to learn riding. They also have a herd of rescued dogs and cats. And Revaz is no less than a mother to each of them."We are a Pune-based family. My husband is an Anglo-Indian and I am a Parsi. Both Bryan and I used to teach at St James. He was the youngest in the high school and I was the youngest in the junior school. That's how we met," she shared.From our first interaction with Revaz, she came across as a strong and gutsy woman who is very driven in her life. On being told about the harassment she faced for being the only woman in the trade, we were left surprised."I had a very tough time initially. This riding school was run by a man who was an ex jockey and trained under my dad. When I joined the school as the head supervisor, his ego was hurt. He would badmouth about me to all. He went on saying things like 'What would she know about horses? She doesn't even know how to ride properly etc'. Later on he was fired by the authorities."From working with rescued animals to being socially aware and raising her voice through editorial letters — there are many things towards Revaz has forayed into. But, she says, "The horses and ponies are my kids. I am so into them."

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