The Saga Of The
Collection Of The Books On Sports
" Yeh Peenay Walay Kya Jaanay,
Paimano Pe Kya Gujari Hai " .................
It was the year of
1966. I had just started playing football and we were at the Bishrampur
Colliery at Chattisgarh , now, and at Madhya Pradesh then. I was the student of
class second ( IInd), then.
Since I had started playing football , then , I along with
my Father started hearing to the running commentary of the I.F.A Sheild finals,
then , being played between the East Bengal Football team and B.N.R . It was a
DING-DONG battle and that was the first time that I heard about Mohammed Habib.
East Bengal won that match by 1-0.
Two days afterwards the newspaper JUGANTAR then had
come to our house. Actually since we are Bengali and since most of the
relatives of my father and Mother lived at Calcutta , then , we would take the Bengali newspaper.It was for
the heads of our family to read those and know what was going at Kokatta and it
was just a method to keep oneself abreast with Calcutta/Kolkatta.
The newspaper written In Bengali , then , was the first
time that I held then. My age then was SEVEN years old. I could not read what
was written in the newspaper but those pictures of the finals of the I.F.A Shield
then captivated me. Slowly I started trying to read the newspaper everyday
opening the Sports page of JUGANTAR and after say three or four years I somehow
could read about 50% of what is and what ws written in the newspaper and that
is how I learned reading Bengali.
I CANNOT READ THE HANDWRIITEN
WORD IN BENGALI. BUT I CAN READ AND UNDERTSAND THE PRINTS AND THAT IS HOW I CAN
READ BENGALI.
My “ LOVE-AFFAIR ” and “ ROMANCE ” with Sports
It was the year 1970. My Father was transferred to Kumbdha
Colliery as a Executive Enginner which again is at Chattsigarh now. IO was then
at Class VI th . Since there was no School in English then , and as I was doing so well in my
studies at the school, then , always getting a FIRST RANK, the family decided
to shift me to the Hostel of Carmel Convent at Bishrampur.
Here during those days, there would be a PASTOR/FATHER who
would come all the way from Ambikapur and would hold the Chapel and the Church.
On one fine visit, after the Chapel was over, I was told by the NUNS to
accompany the Father/Pastor to his rest room to sleep during the night with
him. Actually a lad by the name of Terrance Chappel would do this whenever the
Father/Pastor came there for the same. Terrance would be with him so that incase if that Pastor/Father needed
some tea or warm water during the night, then he would send Terrance to the
Nuns for the same. Actually it was just like a or an Assistant to be with him
during the night for any help he needed .One fine day Terrance was not there. He
for some reason had to go to see his ailing Mother at Bilaspur and for that occasion
I had to be with the Father/pastor.
When I met him, he spoke to me all about my family, myself
and my activities at the School. After hearing to me he just asked me-:
WHO IS THE BEST HOCKEY PLAYER
THAT THE WORLD HAS PRODUCED, AND I HAD NO ANSWER. After listening to
me and my ignorance, he handed me a book on General Knowledge. He opened the
SPORTS page of that book, and told me READ and he whisked a cup of tea, bent
himself fopr some kind of a night prater and he retired for the day. I could not
sleep because of FAILING to answer him for the question he asked me. After
watching him fall asleep, I started turning the pages of the General Knowledge book that he had handed to me and one by one I
browsed through the pages, again and again lest at about 4.00 AM at the night I
finally fell asleep.
The next day he waited for me to get up and I did that by
6.00AM . By that time his tea was served to him. He saw me getting up and asked
me HOW WAS THE SLEEP, to which I replied that I was reading all the pages of
the book which covered General Knowledge. Surprised- he took that book from me
and started asking me questions after questions from the pages of the book that
covered sports and ALL THE ANSWERS WERE SHOT BY
ME BY 100% and every answer were CORRECT. He was so
happy that he brought this to the notice of the Nuns then who were running the
School, then, and ever since then the School would use me for every ELOCUTION
and there were many, many and many a PRIZE that I started winning in the Inter
Colliery School Championship within the Colliery and it’s DSchool in that area.
Slowly my interest in General Knowledge and Sports grew in such a manner that it was then
when I was in Class VIth at the Hostel, I started treading the TIMES
OF INDIA at that age. I would only focus on sports.
Such was my memorizing power in the matter of Sports that
whatever I would read, and whatever I would see the pictures of the Sports, I
would remember those incident, those records and those pictures like a parrot
which MUGS everything .
My First Book On
Sports That I Purchased.
I was on a holiday at Kumbhda Colliery for the Durga Puja. During those days, while at the School, we would have a month off after the terminal exams for Durga Puja, and then we would have a seven days off for the Christmas Holidays, and during that period of the vacataion , we would go to our home to spend the holidays with our family members.
There was a party, a birthday party held in one of the Officer’s house and I was
there with my parents for the same. In that party , the Officers after the cake
was cut started sipping the wine and we the children’s were shifted to another
room, from the drawing room, in that house to be with each other and pass off
the time. During those days, any party thrown by the Officers would start with
some kind of a snack and would end up with wine and dinner. It used to be a
long affair then.
The other children started playing Ludo, carrom and other
games which were offered to us to play but I was not interested. I ALWAYS HAVE BEEN VERY DIFFEERNT FROM MY
CHILDHOOD AND I WOULD PASS OFF MY TIME DOING SOME DIFFERNT ACTIVITY EVEN WHEN I
WAS AMIDST THE CHILDRENS AND THIS WAS NO DIFFERENT.
Pic - : The Collection Of The Books On Sports That Is My " TREASURE "
Not finding anything worth my liking I all of a sudden
opened the cupboard in that room and I saw two books placed over there. One was
the book written by Vijay Hazare and it was CRICKET REPLAYED and the other one
was the book BLASTING FOR RUNS. I picked up that book written by Rohan Kanhai
and started reading it. It contained all the story of Rohan Kanhai, his Test
cricket that he played for the West – Indies against Australia, England and
India.
The photograph of that book straight away was PICTURED in my
HEART. Some of the pictures were very difficult and very hard to see at that
age. Those pictures/ photos were of the West Indian batsman smacked in their
jaws by the Australian bowlers and some were the Aussies MISSILED THUD in
their jaws by Wesly Hall . That was the book FIRST in my life that I read which
was on cricket .
I could not read it full as the time was up after the dinner
to go to our house . But that short duration of that book which I read made me
fall to the book. That was the first time I felt so deeply leaned and inclined to cricket that ever
since then I became a GLUED STICK cricket fan though football always was my
FIRST CHOICE AND LOVE .
Actually in that same year the World Cup Football match was
held at Mexico and in the Finals, then, Brazil with King Pele had beaten Italy
by 4-1/I had heard the radio commentary then, and I was always reading all
about East Bengal and I by then had become the BEST CENTRE FORWARD in School
Football at Bishrampur. Though I would play cricket then with equal ease but it
was Football in which I was a master at the School. This is how the reading
habits inculcated and ever since then, I was a master in the arena of the
General Knowledge of Sports.
All of a sudden my father was to go to Calcutta for some
official job and when he asked me what should he bring for me , from . Calcutta , I just asked him to bring
me that book – BLASTING FOR RUNS by Rohan Kanhai. When he came back he not only
brought that book but brought a cricket bat for me.That bat has the name VIJAY
MANJEREKAR written on it . Thus it was
that I got the first book on cricket and from there it was so many a books on
sports and games. Many are still with me, some have NOT come back to me after I
gave it to some of my friends to read those and the OK, that book BLASTING
FOR RUNS that you see here, the FIRST one that I got it purchased
through my Father, in 1970 is still with me .
That book was
purchased by my Father from a road side book seller from Calcutta then and was
handed to me on March 16th
1970 . Today that book, that you see above on the picture, as above ,
has completed
it’s 50th years of it’s stay with me , though my marriage is of 26 years as of now .
My First Sports Book In Hindi
I was then at the
Hostel of Christ Church Boys’ Higher Secondary School, at Jabalpur.
During those days, we would at time, be allowed to go for an exeat, rpt “
EXEAT ” . We would take some
pocket money from the Hostel warden and mostly the Boys’ would prefer to eat
Dosa or drink the Cold Cream Coffee at the Indian Coffee House at Jabalpur. I
had some other ideas always. I would either buy a “ KHEL KHILADI ” edited
and authored by Mr Yograj Thani, then. In Hindi or buy the “ SPORTSWEEK ” edited by Mr
Khalid Anasari. The FIRST book, of sports, in Hindi, that I
purchased was a book by the name…….. “ BHARAT KAY YE ANMOL RATNA KHILADI ” .
I remember reading that book and ONE chapter was on Vijay
Hazare. After reading about Hazare alongside Dhyanchand, I then memorized that
book authored by Vijay Hazare, which was CRICKET REPLAYED. In that Hindi book I
had read about Vijay Hazare completing a 100 metres dash in 11.00 second exact
in a Sports Meet at Baroda. That was the time I realized the importance of
dash, speed and fitness in sports though I was playing football in full steam
then. Thereafter I wpould run 100 meters for about 10 times during the practice
session at the school , or during the game before I stepped in the field to
play football . For many a days, even when I would not play any games, the long distance running, especially the 5000 mertes run and thereafter the 100 meres dash would be my daily affair and whenever I had the time by my side, I would leave everything, whereever I was placed and would go to the field to run .It was just for the heck of it that I would run and this practice continued till the 36th years of my life, lest I gave it away.
I NEVER WON ANY RACE AT THE
SCHOOL BUT I WON ALL THE DIFFERENT TEAM SPORTS EVENT IN THE SCHOOL BESIDES
PARTICIPATING IN BOXING AT THE SCHOOL IN THE FLY WEIGHT DIVISION.
In Football, I played a total of 182 games and won 162 of them. That was it in football for me. I totally gave up playing Football at the age of 20 .
However , when I was in the College, I was in the Football and the Hockey team beside in the Vidharbha Under - 19 team in the year 1978 for the Inter Zonal Vijay Hazare Trophy . I was a Wicket - keeper when I was playing cricket .
Back again to the sports book. That book of sports in Hindi was taken by many at the School from me to read it in Hostel but unfortunately it NEVER came back to me. That book had as many as THIRTEEN different sportsman and their deeds covered which also included Milkha Singh and Henry Rebello doing their bits in the Olympics covered by Mr Yograj Thani . SORRY to say some boarder took it and DID NOT HAVE THE COURAGE TO GIVE IT BACK TO ME. That was my FIRST sports book in Hindi that I had purchased .
My First “ SPORTSWEEK ” and it’s purchase
We were at Pathakhera Coal Mines and I had passed out my
Middle school Board Examination then . Pathakhera was at Betul District, at
Madhya Pradesh . I had come to Nagpur from Pathakhera, to write an entrance
exam, for getting a seat in the Central School then. While at Nagpur then, I
came across the issues of Sportsweek SURPRISINGLY in HINDI though Sportsweek
was an English weeklies on Sports. Sportsweek had tried to also give to the
Hindi readers the same in Hindi. However it could not do well and the Hindi edition of it, was soon on it's way out, and thus the
English edition kept on coming to the market.
That Hindi edition of the Sportsweek contained a full scape
article on B.P.Govinda and Naini Radha, an athlete who afterward was converted
into a make athlete, the FIRST of the gender conversion in the annals of Indian
games and sports and Sportsweek then had covered that news in breadth and
length.It was thus through that Sportsweek in Hindi that I came to know about
B.P.Govinda and the sex change that takes place in Indian and the games and
sports of the World. I had purchased
both the copies and ever since from that date till about 1988 I continuously
kept on purchasing every copies of SPORTSWEEK.
That was in 1972 when I first purchased the copy of Sportsweek. .
From 1978 I started purchasing every copy of SPORTSWORLD
edited by Nawab Of Pataudi. Then I started purchasing many editions/copies of
KHELAR ASAR and KHELA in Bengali. I thereafter binded every copies of
Sportsweek from 1972 to 1988 when Sportsweek was abandoned, evert copies of
SPORTSWORLD from about 1978 to about 1988 and every copies of Khelar Asar and
Khela .
Pic- : The BINDED VOLUME of “ KHELA ” along with some other books on
Sports
Some Interesting Facts Which Might “ SHAKE ” The Readers That Is
Related To These Books
Every story that goes has some PAINS to endure and every
story has it’s ending as well. Mine is
also related to this books.
It was the year 1979, and that was the year we stayed last
at Kamptee Colliery brfore my father constructed our House at Nagpur in one of
ther most POSH colony at Nagpur. During those days we/I would come to Nagpur by
the School Bus and then would return by the same bus to Kamptee Colliery.
One day I landed at Ananda Bhandar , the front gate had a
book seller selling the book. I saw the copies of Sportsworld and Sportsweek ,
the most recent one. One carried the full story of the I.F.A League, played at
Calcutta, then, won by Mohun Bagan and the other had the Test match played
between India and Pakistan going on then. Both were priced at Rupee 1=00 each.
So it was TWO RUPEE that I paid and took the copies. In doing so the School bus
came to the place from where it had to pick me , and not finding me it whizzed
and past by taking the others.
When I reached to that spot, I was told that the bus had
come and it had gone. I knew the next stop where the bus would stand. So it was
a MIX of ROAD RUNNING and a DASH to the next stop. Hard luck that it was – the bus
just started moving and it caught the speed . I just missed it. I still, hoping
that I would catch it, ran the race of my life but to no avail.
Anyway- I started walking from the L.I.C Square at Nagpur,
and walked upto 40 kilometres to reach my home at about 12.07 AM exact at
Kamptee Colliery. My parents were so
shocked to see me reach the house so late in night and in that condition. When
enquired, I told them all about the same.
MY FATHER WAS AT THE NINTH SKY IN TERMS OF TEMPER. He
was screaming- WAS THERE ANY DEARTH OF MY FRIEND AT NAGPUR FROM WHOM YOU COULD
NOT BORROW RUPESS FIVE AND COME HERE. I WOULD HAVE REPAID HIM THAT
MONEY/AMOUNT. During those days the bus from Nagpur to Kamptee was priced for
Rs 1-10 and the auto charge from Kamptee to Kamptee Colliery was priced for Rs
1=00 , a total of 2 = 10. He was loud
and unstoappable to hear me walking about 40 kilometres and reaching home,
spending Rupees 2=00 for the sports journal that I have mentioned.
I just told him- I FEEL INSULT TO BEG FOR MONEY TO
EVERYBODY OR ANYBODY. EVEN I HAVE A LOT OF FRIENDS AT Y.M.C.A WHO ARE STUDYING
AT HISLOP COLLEGE AND THEY COULD HAVE GIVEN MR RUPEES 5=00 . I CANNOT BEG AND
THAT IS IT.
SLAPS HERE, SLAPS THERE AND SLAPS EVERYWHERE FOLLOWED
THEREAFTER – MY ONLY ANSWER WAS :: I CANNOT BEG TO ANYBODY FOR
ANYTHING AND I WILL NEVER DO THAT. Well that ended the matter.
Turning to my Mother , he said- HE IS BORN TO MAKE ME FEEL LOW
AND INSULTED
TO EVERYBODY.
THIS
IS HIS NATURE.
I’M A SENIOR EXECUTIVE ENGINEER OF
A COAL MINES AND PEOPLE WOULD SAY THAT I CANNOT EVEN GIVE HIM A SUMS OF RUPEES
FIVE TO COME BACK TO HOME. Listening I again said – I CANNOT BOW DOWN MY HEAD FOR
ANYTHING TO ANYBODY FOR ANY HELP THAT THEY MIGHT OFFER ME.
Asking something, maybe in terms of anything from anybody has NEVER been my habit and I cannot do it for any reason . Right from my childhood, there are TWO things, as a habit I have followed. The FIRST is choose the BEST and the DIAMONDS of Friends, and the SECOND is NOT TO ASK FOR ANY FAVOURS FROM ANYBODY.
His temper by that time had reached to HELL. He took his
slipper and threw at me and CURSED me saying that – ALL THESE SPORTS BOOK OF YOURS WILL BE
EATEN AWAY BY THE EARTHWORM AND ONLY
THEN MY SOUL WILL REST IN PEACE
. THIS IS A “ CURSE ” THAT I GIVE TO YOUR SPORTS BOOKS.
It happened exactly – all the volumes of all the books of
SPORTSWEEK, SPORTSWORLD, KHELA and KHELAR ASAR were gulped by the EARTH WORM except ONE that you
see it over here.
The other books on sports which are depicted/shown here
somehow could not be gulped by the earth worm as I had kept it with me safe in
a trunk within the house.Since the trunks cannot be chewed by the earth worms,
it remained safe and is till with me.The other one’s as described have been the
BREAKFAST-LUNCH-AND-DINNER
for the earth worms . That happened in 1993 . I was at last HAPPY,
feeling that OK- NOW MY FATHER’S SOUL WOULD PERHAPS IS IN PEACE!!!!!.
He expired on June 3rd 1988, the day on which the GREAT Mr Raj Kapoor expired and he was born on June 16th 1934, the date when the Film Star MITHUN CHAKRAVORTY was born. An Additional Chief Engineer ( Electrical and Maintenance ) at the Coal Mines ....... I feel that if his soul really is in PEACE now..... then I'm extremely INDEBTED to those EARTHWORM who ate those volumes of those periodicals as I COULD NOT GIVE ANYTHING TO MY FATHER IN RETURN till he was alive. Atleast I could give him the PEACE through those feeds to the earthworm of those 1000 copies of the sports magazine that I have mentioned............. I EXACTLY had " 1000 " copies of those..
Back again to the main subject . The next moment saw me getting up at about 4.00AM, and I
left the house at about 4.30 AM for Nagpur. I had to attend the practical’s at
Hislop College which would start at about 6.30AM in the morning. I was handed a
good amount of money by my Father to go to the College. He just asked me- AT
WHAT TIME WOULD YOU COME BACK AND HOW WOULD YOU COME, I REPLIED HIM BY 12.07 AM
IN NIGHT AND BY WALK. For that was my APTITUDE and ATTITUDE be it to my Father , be it anyone. It still remains the same
now.
SUNNY DAY’S :: 1977
This book published by RUPA AND COMPANY was released in 1976 but I purchased in 1977
from Nagpur as the book had hit the Nagpur market in 1977.
This book is the FIRST of the many written by Sunil Gavaskar
and it is an autobiography on cricket. Beautiful a book to read and it was
priced at Rupees 10=00 at that time.
During those days, if we ate a piece of masala Dosa, it
would cost Rs 0=75 paisa and a cup of tea would be about 0=25 paisa. ONE FULL
RUPEE IN TOTO FOR A BREAKFAST FOR A DAY.
Without giving it any thought , I purchased the book and ATE
NOTHING FOR MY BREAKFAST FOR TEN DAYS. I DID NOT ASK MONEY TO MY
PARENTS FOR THOSE TEN DAYS OF MISSING THOSE BREAKFAST IN THE HOSTEL…….
That was my LOVE for the SPORTS
MAGAZINE………
Show me any pictures/photos of the games and sports that has
taken place in the annals of India’s games and sports and BY NINTY PERCENT I WOULD BE CORRECT…….
My Collection Of Sports Cassettes - ::
The Video Cassettes Recorder and it's tide had hit India in 1984 and when I saw it first I infact took a VOW that I would purchase it one day. In 1991 I had enough savings ( Rs 21,000=00) in my account and the FIRST thing that I did was purchase the VCR.
Pic - :: The Collection ... EVERY CASSETTES ARE AND WERE OF SPORTS
All the Wimbledon matches from 1991 to about 1995 and the WORLD CUP FOOTBALL Finals of 1994 beside that INFAMOUS BRAZIL-HOLLAND match and many such memorable match were recorded by me . The infamous Tennis match of 1991 between Steffi Graf and Gabriela Sabatini was the one which was the first to be recorded by me in 1991 . Down 1-5 in the final set, Graff came out winner by either 9-7 or 11-9 in that match.That was something really which I had recorded which was one of the match of the last millinium.
The infamous Sports Cassettes that relates to FOOTBALL, CRICKET or OLYMPICS that the WIILS came out with between 1991 to 1995 were some of the most precious collection. In 1996 my HEAD of that recorder was damaged and I could not repair that.That VCR still remains but now it is out of gear and order and the replaceable parts are not available.IT IS DEAD FOR EVER but because of it I COULD COMPLETE THE OR FULFIL ONE OF MY WISH TO PRESERVE AND MAKE THOSE CASSETTES.
The cassettes have also NOT being played by me since 1996 after the VCR was DEAD for all it's count. With that the case is gone and lost for ever.....
Pic - :: Some Of Most Most exciting Collection ..... as PRECIOUS AS " GOLD "
Also the kind of the PHOTOGRAPHS that I still have even with
about 1000 numbers pf the SPORTSWEEK, SPORTSWORLD, KHELA and KHELAR ASAR going
in the TOMMA of the earth worm FOR THE PEACE THAT IT PROVIDED TO MY FATHER’S
SOUL…….. very few will have those kind of GREGARIOUS pictures with them to show
if at all they would have to show it to the others……. On SPORTS……
TODAY I HAVE COMPLETED MY FIFTIETH
(50 th ) YEARS ie , MY GOLDEN JUBILEE , OF BUYING THAT
FIRST BOOK ON SPORTS
The One that you see there- INDIAN CRICKET :: FACES THAT CHANGED IT has been my FIRST Book, that I have written on SPORTS........ on cricket .....
'Back again to those copies of Sportsweek, Sportsworld, Khela, Khelar asar, and Khel Hulchal as well as Khel Khiladi.
Today at times when I'm in need of those copies for some outstanding photographs, I completely start crying when I need them and those photos. Those pictures in those copies, if I had them , and had used those photos from those copies IT WOULD HAVE SHOOK THE WORLD. For those were the CLASS and STANDARD of the photographs in those book.
However- when I think of my Father and his SOUL - I WIPE OUT MY TEARS SAYING TO MYSELF THAT OK ATLEAST THOSE COPIES HAVE COME IN AS A SUCCOUR TO HELP TO KEEP HIS SOUL IN EVERLASTING PEACE .
No Doubt As They Say - PRICELESS THINGS ARE AT TIMES " NOT " PRICEFUL TO PROVIDE PEACE.
For me - STILL NOW AND EVEN NOW- THOSE SPORTSWEE MAGAZINES WERE THE MOST VLAUABLE AND PRICELESS .
" I HOPE MY FATHER'S SOUL IS LYING AT ETERNAL PEACE " .....
Well , that is it and That sums it all.
Regards and Thanks
Pics
Shyamal Bhattacharjee
Mr Shyamal Bhattacharjee, the author was born at West Chirimiri Colliery at District Surguja, Chattisgarh on July 6th 1959 He received his early education at Carmel Convent School Bishrampur and later at Christ Church Boys' Higher Secondary School at Jabalpur. He later joined Hislop College at Nagpur and completed his graduation in Science and he also added a degree in B A thereafter. He joined the HITAVADA, a leading dailies of Central India at Nagpur as a Sub-Editor ( Sports ) but gave up to complete his MBA in 1984 He thereafter added a Diploma In Export Management. He has authored THREE books namely Notable Quotes and Noble Thought published by Pustak Mahal in 2001 Indian Cricket : Faces That Changed It published by Manas Publications in 2009 and Essential Of Office Management published by NBCA, Kolkatta in 2012. He has a experience of about 35 years in Marketing .
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