CHUCK DE: A STORY OF NATIONAL NEGLECT - Simy Dixon

Jaideep Sahni’s Chak de! India , though well received by the Indian Audience , has still not helped the nation realize the aspirations of many of the largely neglected Indian Sportspersons. Rather, on the contrary any other sport other than cricket has been chucked out of the public interest. This article is about yet another Mir Ranjan Negi, who stands tall in the Arena and speaks out about the colossal neglect that is pandemic in our nation.

Dr. Jose, born in the year 1931 in a little village in Manimala, Kerala attended St. Berchmans high school in Changanacherry. He vividly remembers his early athletic achievements. “I used to win prizes every year starting right from my first standard!” he brags. “But from the day I first saw the college students play hockey, I was hooked. I’d go every evening and sit on the college wall, watching them practice. Later on when I myself joined the S.B College I started practicing with great enthusiasm. In the second year I became a reserve player and in 1949 I got my position as the right-out..” Unable to secure a medical seat at Trivandrum.Medical.College, on sports quota as another tennis player replaced him. Dr. Jose crossed the state borders and joined Kasturba Medical College, Manipal. His determination evident, he continues,“I was very sure that I would under no circumstance stop playing hockey. So when I went to Kasturba, I took along my hockey stick..” He chuckles and says “you see no one else had come with a hockey stick, the main reason being that there was no hockey team in the college! Everyone found the Malayalee with the stick very amusing and our college founder Dr.Pai who was visiting that day, talked about me and my stick to the entire college in the first assembly through the micro phone. All the freshers noticed me and very soon I was approached by other students who also had a passion for the game.

All of us went together to the deans, talked to them and soon we were a team.. We were like a tin of assorted sweets, for there were good players from a lot of different states I took the place of team manager and was captain two times. We were a good team, aggressive and bold. We were always ready to go play anywhere. The farther the venue, the keener we were to go. We loved the game. Hockey was in our blood!”

However, the doctor is sober when he talks about the reception that the game got. “Not even the college students cared for the game or for the players who brought so many laurels to the college. Some people, especially the Anglo Indian professors did try to make the game popular and more competitions were also arranged. But nothing worked out. Nothing was stable in those early days and especially here in the south, people ridiculed the sport. Some people would even swear at us and abuse us for playing what they believed to be the ‘foreigner’s game’. The townspeople found it very amusing to see hockey players roaming the streets in the evening, after practice in their jerseys and with their sticks.” For someone who loved the game so much Dr. Jose never went beyond the district level games as ther was nothing more beyond this. Once, a
feeble attempt to form a Travancore state team involving the doctor ,was scotched by the tumultuous politics of the time of Partition.

After more exploits at Kasturba, the doctor,headed back to Changanacherry to set up his private practice. He contacted interested former college mates and former teachers and formed the ‘Old Boys Team’. They would play with any team, young or old that was willing to play against them. He formed hockey clubs wherever he could and became the district hockey federation secretary. He wrote countless articles to boost the sport in local magazines. But in spite of all their efforts, the sport did not kick off well. “By the time I came back from Manipal, even the existing earlier teams had been disbanded. Of course college boys still had hockey sticks, but those were for fighting not for playing. Most of the five colleges that did have teams back then later on stopped coaching completely. The government simply was not interested and the college authorities would not give much help. We bought our own equipment and handled most of the travel expenses on our own. And you have to remember, this was during the time when people did not even have enough to eat. No sport can survive without adequate aid. Hockey never got much government support.”

Though hockey is obviously a glaring example of a sport suffering from state disinterest, it is obviously not the only one. Locals who frequent the town stadium, lament the lack of amenities for any kind of decent sport. They point out parts of the structure which are in decay and which require urgent renovation. Sportspersons are never with labels on their foreheads. They become great athletes only through years of tireless practice and exercise. They require the encouragement and aid of the government.The Indian stars who have managed to break into the national and international scene, mostly do so thanks to their own efforts.None of the existing political parties have shown interests in nurturing sports and athletics. We have governments that give huge amounts as rewards to already established stars. But what they simply fail to see is that for more stars to come forth, an active contribution must be done to the training centers.

It is appalling to know that Olympian Chitra Soman had to train in broken down grounds which would often substitute also as the venue for fairs and festivals. While foreign athletes train on synthetic tracks and with advanced equipment our athletes run in maidans along with cows and with health conscious diabetics patients who just about manage to dawdle forward. It is no wonder then that our performance at international events like the Olympics simply fail to measure up. The Indian stars who have managed to break into the national and international scene, mostly do so thanks to their own efforts. None of the existing political parties have shown interests in nurturing sports and athletics. We have governments that give huge amounts as rewards to already
established stars. But what they simply fail to see is that for more stars to come forth, an active contribution must be done to the training centers.

Another unsung legend we have.. He was called ‘Rocket’ because his volley serve was so powerful that people were afraid to stand on the opposite side of the net. Playing volley ball was when Basheer was at his best. But since that would obviously not bring food on his table he would do odd jobs during the day, and play and teach volleyball the rest of his time. Six months back , he died an old man , reducing the passion of a lifetime to a mere title “Rocket Basheer” in the obituary coloum in the local newspaper . Many such stalwarts have lived unrecognized lives with withered dreams.

The world hockey games will soon be played in the Dhyan Chand National Stadium. For a team that used to be the best once upon a time, we are literally shaking with anxiety. Our players have not been given enough incentives, respect or encouragement by the authorities.They remain sidelined when juxtaposed with cricketers and tennis players. Art cannot thrive without patrons and sports cannot thrive without undying, relentless support. Aslam Sher Khan, a key hero of the1975 triumphant hockey team that won the world cup, played for a few more years, grew disillusioned, quit and penned a book titled ‘To Hell With Hockey’. Let us hope that the government learns to treat sportsmen of all fields with equal respect. But the fire has to be induced by those governed –us ! Let us all strive to give our Motherland’s neglected players a boost that they are craving for. 

Let us kindle the spark that will light up a billion minds and force a change on the Government policies. The
change has to begin from within.