Googoo vs Rambabu: Delhi is ready to crown its fattest dog after 64 contenders, multiple rounds and days of voting

Delhi’s fattest dog contest has gone from 64 contenders to two, with Googoo from Saket and Rambabu from Yusuf Sarai making it to the final after days of Instagram polls and strong fan support.

The contest has turned some of the capital’s most famously chonky neighbourhood dogs into social media stars, with their supporters campaigning for every vote as the competition moved from one round to the next.

The competition began on September 24 with 64 dogs from Delhi-NCR. Organised by the Instagram page Fat Dogs of Delhi, the contest asked followers to vote for their favourite dogs through Instagram Story polls.

The competition followed a knockout format, with dogs facing each other in successive rounds. Among those making it to the later stages were Moti, Mahakutteshwar, Tara, Hero, Rambabu, Gola, C.R.S. and Googoo.

The quarter-final stage eventually produced four semifinal matchups. Googoo faced Tara, while Hero took on Gola.

The other dogs who had made it deep into the competition included Moti, Mahakutteshwar, Rambabu and C.R.S.

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Googoo vs Tara and Hero vs Gola

The semifinal stage featured four contenders, Googoo, Tara, Hero and Gola.

Googoo, from Saket, went up against Tara, the popular Khan Market dog also known as Khan Sahab. The other semifinal saw Hero face Gola, who was known around SDA Market in Hauz Khas and was also called Kebab or Rajpal Singh.

The contest took an unexpected turn when Tara and Gola died before the grand finale.

The organisers announced their deaths on Instagram and paid tribute to both dogs. They also said they planned to raise funds and donate the proceeds to animal-welfare causes in their memory.

 

Take a look at who made it to the semi-finals.

 

 

 

 

 

 

With the semifinal stage ending on that note, Googoo and Rambabu emerged as the two names left in the final.

Meet Googoo, the 46 kg contender

Googoo is a mixed-breed dog from Saket who weighs 46 kg.

He has been staying at Jeevashram Foundation, an animal-care NGO in Delhi, where he has been undergoing a weight-loss programme.

As per media reports, his meals are being regulated. He gets 250 grams of daliya for breakfast, three chapatis in milk for lunch and a small quantity of chicken at 4 pm. He also undergoes medical check-ups.

Kabir Wadhawaran, who entered Googoo into the competition, first spotted him in a local park in 2021. At the time, Wadhawaran said the dog was less than half his current size.

Googoo has since built his own following online, with supporters calling him the GOAT, champion and king.

Rambabu is the other finalist

Googoo’s final opponent is Rambabu, also known as Chonky, from Yusuf Sarai.

Rambabu has been a familiar face in the area for years. Security guard Kamlesh, who has seen the dog for around five years, told The Indian Express that Rambabu starts his day with biryani given to him by a local caregiver.

Shatakshi Singh, who entered Rambabu into the competition, first met him after moving to Delhi for work. She described him as a “gentle giant” and wanted to introduce him to a wider audience as one of the city’s much-loved dogs.

How the contest became a viral hit

What began as an Instagram contest quickly grew beyond a simple poll.

The page’s following reportedly rose from just over 1,000 followers when the competition began to more than 85,000 by September 28.

Dog lovers from different parts of Delhi-NCR began backing their favourites, while people from outside Delhi also joined in. Supporters created posters, shared posts and rallied votes for the dogs they wanted to see advance.

The competition also attracted brand attention. Blinkit publicly backed Kutta Singh, one of the earlier contenders, and promised free treats for the eventual winner.

The idea for the contest came from the page’s anonymous creator, a final-year Delhi University journalism student. She had been posting photographs of overweight dogs she spotted around Delhi before deciding to organise a 64-dog tournament.

The contest has also drawn comparisons with Alaska’s annual Fat Bear Week, although the organiser has said the competition was not inspired by it.

Now, after six days of voting and multiple knockout rounds, only two dogs remain.

Googoo from Saket and Rambabu from Yusuf Sarai will face off in the final for the title of Delhi’s fattest dog.