For any reporter a Vox populi or voice of the people can be one of the easiest assignments ....When you are scrambling for news ideas every evening, a call from the assignment desk asking you to send a few vox-pops (that's what they are called in journalistic parlance) next morning comes as a ray of hope. And there is nothing like it when the topic happens to be cricket. Throw questions on cricket and public will crowd around you and your gun-mike will start to pick up voices from all directions.
"Tendulkar! What a player he is."
"Had he not got back his form...India would have lost the series."
Public hai saab janti hai.... So you start talking cricket, even a street smart paanwallah can turn one of the best critics of the game.
"Sachin is doing well because he has started to wait for the ball," says one.
"Yes, Shastri, Gavaskar had completely written him off. How can you judge a person by sitting inside studios?" another chips in.
In a cricket crazy country like India...you can see Dhoni's poster on the main entrance of U19 star Tanmay Srivastava's house in a middle class locality in Lucknow. You can see clones of Sahwag or Sachin in virtually every city.
In a felicitation ceremony in Lucknow you can see dozens of cops virtually mobbing Praveen Kumar, son of a UP police constable. Many of them eagerly wanting to know which cricket academy would be the best for their child.
"Its not necessary that a hawaldars son has to join the force. He can become a cricket star. See Praveen," remarks a cop.
It may be only be an advertisement, but when you see Super Star Shahrukh Khan don the cricket blues you begin to wonder is this the only game that is played in our country?
But often vox-pops cause headaches...especially when the topic is as dull as Hockey. So when we set out on our Vox-pops 'mission'... we found hockey assignment much tougher than we had imagined.
Ask someone about hockey most likely reaction you get from the public nowadays is a big frown.
"Excuse me."
"I am busy."
"I won't be able to say much.".....these were the only answers we managed to get when we asked some citizens for a sound-bite.
We were really puzzled. In the Hindi heartland where hockey once used to be a passion, we soon realized that best way to get answers on hockey was to get people to talk cricket. Surprising! In Uttar Pradesh from where at least half a dozen cricketers (read stars) have emerged in the national scene in the last two years...cricket seems to be the only game people want to discuss these days.
So began our vox-pop session:
Q). Do you know who is Praveen Kumar?
A). Oh. You don't know, pat came the reply. He was man of the match in the big finals in Australia. He virtually demolished Australia. He bowled a match winning spell. 4/45. What a find for India.
Q). What about Tanmay Srivastava?
A). He is the star for the future. His under-19 performance has been exceptional. How consistent he was in the U19 world cup. Do you know he is from Lucknow? He used to practice....
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Q). But...but...(I tried to interrupt him)
A). ... You must have seen the crowd outside his house when India won the U19 cup. . You know where he lives? In Alambagh. 12 kms from here.
Q). People often get confused with the two Sharmas - Rohit and Ishant. Who is better?
A). Oh yes...Ishant is tall. 6 feet. 4 inch. I am telling you this lad will make it big in the modeling arena one day. Rohit he is also quite handsome and stylish. They both...
Q). Hang on...hang on...I was asking about their performance. Not looks.
A). Well, who cares...they have already got so much money. Even if they fail they will become TV commentators. Aaj kaal har TV channel par ek cricket ka expert bathta hai. Apne zamane main balla (bat) to chala nahin aab mooh (mouth) chala raha hai.
Q). Well can you name few hockey players.
A). Yes....Yes... Dhoni, Yuvraj, Tendulkar, Praveen Kumar, Harbhajan, Kaif, Chawla...
Q). Hang on...hang on...I am asking you hockey players NOT cricket players!
A). Well hockey...hockey...I know...a few...they are....I do not remember their names. Do not see them often on TV.
Q). Sir ji...can you at least tell me about Dhaynchand?
A). Dhyanchand....Oh...Yes I have heard about him. He was....He played something....well...for India...I don't know much.
After I finished my assignment I was quite ashamed to tell all those who had come to give us sound-bites; perhaps too embarrassed to tell them, that they are born in the same state where more than 100 years back was born a hockey wizard who was part of the fabled India hockey team which won three straight gold medals in Olympics - Amsterdam in 1928, Los Angles in 1932 and Berlin in 1936. This wizard was none other than Major Dhyan Chand who was born in August 1905, in Allahabad --- same town which now prefers to remember Mohammad Kaif for his runs with the bat than legendary Dhyanchand for his deft magic with the hockey stick.
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