Cutouts and banners greet you at every nook and corner of football-mad Kerala. You can catch all the action on the beaches even during the fearful monsoons. Even a local village match is packed with supporters. And what better way to show the fervour than name your sons after football greats? Malayali artist Yusuf Arakkal declares he
knows “at least half a dozen Malayali Maradonas and Baggios and Peles!” He adds, “Football is undoubtedly the best sport in the world. It’s a sport that everybody can enjoy. I have seen even village football matches packed. The game has a special thrill for us Keralites.”
Yusuf has played and captained his high school team. He was so good as the goalkeeper that he was nicknamed Thangaraj after the great Indian Olympian goalkeeper! “I had the great opportunity to meet him,” reveals Yusuf. “According to my coach, I had the potential to make it and he predicted a career for me in football.” But life took another turn when the artist moved to Bengaluru. “Earlier, every wayside tea shop had a radio where people used to congregate and listen to football commentary. Even the results from the smallest of matches from Thrissur or Calicut would be waited for,” he recalls.
From great players to a knowledgable public, the footballer in Kerala is given the utmost respect. “The dedication and craziness is unparalleled,” says Yusuf and adds, “When one of my relatives, Olympian footballer Rahman, died recently, there was a huge procession in Palaghat honouring him.”
A match is like a carnival and footballers are treated like VIPs. During off season, every dry paddy field turns into a football ground. Every school has a football ground. “I have seen this in Sao Paolo, Brazil,” continues Yusuf. As the Indian commissioner for Sao Paolo International Biennale, he spent a month in Brazil and used to watch matches at the Ibarapara park. “In the slums there were some amazing football graffiti. The young boys play on the streets and that makes me identify more with Brazil.”
Goa: Go Goaah over footie
With the beaches and shacks in Goa overflowing with supporters from the Samba nation or Portugal, it would seem there’s no religion like football. You can be sure to get the crowds in even for a village match. And of course, everyone has an opinion on what the outcome is going to be. Goan Brahamanand Shankwalkar, ex-Indian team captain and goalkeeper, literally breathes football. “I can’t think of anything else that makes me so passionate as football,” says this footballer. “Football is religion in Goa. People have built shrines and museums in honour of the game and its heroes. While most of us support Brazil and Portugal (for obvious reasons) we do have the odd Argentinian supporter as well. Fans paint their bodies and hair in colours of the flags and even tattoo themselves!” Asked if he ever thought of playing cricket, Brahmanand laughs at the thought. “Both my father and grandfather were footballers. It runs in the family, the passion.” For centuries football has been top priority for Goa. “It’s part of our lives in Goa,” he adds.
Any high for Portugal is a high for Goa! At the Euro semis, it was a carnival with people waving Portuguese flags, dancing and drinking all night! Brahmanand says, “I have a heart for Portugal but I’m a Brazil fan because of the kind of football they play. The biggest match I am looking forward to is Brazil versus Portugal. In Goa, everyone in the family loves football and we watch all the matches together even if we support different teams.” Brahmanand predicts, “My gut feel is that Argentina is going to win.”
A teacher in a higher secondary school, Pradeep Chodankar has taken his passion for football to another level. “It’s inborn!” exclaims this former senior division player. “You don’t need to teach a Goan how to play — it comes automatically!” Pradeep started his “museum project” in 1998 during the France World Cup. His house in Mapusa has been converted into a veritable museum of all sorts of football-related memorabilia. There are flags, jerseys, footballs and even a mini stadium inside!
Kolkata: Mad about fish curry and football
Pannalal Chatterjee and his wife Chaitali, a couple in their 70s, make a pilgrimage once every four years with their savings to watch the soccer World Cup. They carry Indian flags, and treasure a photo of Pele posing with them during the 1994 World Cup in the USA.
Giant screens can be spotted at major crossings in Kolkata — Moulali, Gariahat and Park Circus. Every “para” has been decorated with flags of Argentina and Brazil. Locally-made vuvuzelas are played during matches. The fan base is so large that no wonder Pele and Maradona visited the city. And if this isn’t enough, walls have been painted by artist Ajoy Kar. Since 1986, this full-time railway employee paints the football action of Kaka, Pato and Maradona on at least 200 walls in the city!
S.K. Banerjee, 73, who used to work for a Scottish tea company, says he’s still a keen student of football. “For the Bengalis, it’s jhol and football — that is their passion.” Football is a great leveller. Its egalitarian leanings have made it popular (like in Brazil) with lower middle class boys who are playing the game. Banerjee rues the fact that, “The days of Chunni Goswami and P.K. Banerjee who were university students are long gone.”
Banerjee is a true football fan. He has followed his favourite players through their ups and downs in various league matches. “My first love is football and I played it in school,” he admits and adds, “I have been all over the world to see football matches. I saw Brazil winning the World Cup in Stockholm; I saw the France semi-final match and the finals; I saw the rise of Pele. But my all-time favourite was Garrincha. I also saw a lot of football in England. Another great favourite is Ferenc Puskas of Hungary. I have gone all the way to Spain to see him play. Then I saw him in Old Trafford playing against Man U (1958). I went to see Real play European Cup final in 1960 when they beat Frankfurt.”
And have his loyalties changed at all over the years? “As a school boy, I was a staunch supporter of Arsenal with the Cromptons being my favourite. After Bobby Charleton and Dennis Law came on the scene, I became a Man U supporter!” Banerjee gets excited at the thought of Puskas in one of his matches and vividly remembers him “firing the ball in one marvellously fluid movement, over the goalie’s shoulder.”
At the World Cup, he is “obviously” supporting Brazil. “Whether they win or lose, they play beautiful football,” he adds. Kolkata is the only city where you can find 90,000 people sitting and watching a derby football match! When East Bengal and Mohun Bagan play, all Kolkatans gets excited. “Football is the Kolkatan’s food,” declares Stanley Rosario, the present coach of Mohun Bagan. He believes Kolkata is the mecca of football. “Every village has more footballers than cricketers.” Of late, he also finds Goan football has progressed a lot because of the youth development programme. “Every panchayat also has stadiums! There are qualified coaches and for the past three years the top teams in the I-league are all Goan.” Stanley has played for the Army and also coached Salgoacar. Passionate about football, he admits he “never thought of cricket!” “Right from my childhood, it’s always been a love for football.” And his greatest moment was when he met Maradona in Kolkata.