Taj

Taj The Genie is, as his name implies, a genie of the elephant species. In Diddy Kong Racing, Taj is an acquaintance to Timber, Diddy, and their friends on their quest to get rid of Wizpig. In the game, the player can race Taj up to three times. If the player wins, Taj will award them with a Golden Balloon. Taj can also change his vehicle.

Taj can be seen in the trailer for Donkey Kong Racing where he was racing Donkey Kong with both on Zingers and raced Diddy and Donkey on Rambis where he was seen with a small red Rambi. He can also be seen riding past the LET'S RIDE words on a Zinger at the end of the trailer.

Taj reappears as an unlockable character in Diddy Kong Racing DS. He is unlocked by defeating the first Adventure Mode. Taj has maximum top speed, but horrible acceleration and turning. He is the fastest character in the game when in a car. He is also your guide when not racing and not controlling him.

Trivia

 * In the original Diddy Kong Racing, Taj had an Indian accent and spoke more often. In Diddy Kong Racing DS, he speaks a lot less and sounds more British, implying that he was voiced by Rare.
 * The name Taj also appeared on the Tetris Attack high score board. It is unknown if it was the current Taj or a different one.
 * An unused music file in the data for Diddy Kong Racing features the player select theme played on Indian instruments. This could mean that Taj was originally to be a playable character at first, but the idea was eventually scrapped.