(KC Kalkura)
“To keep his memory alive, a statue of my father (Major Dhyan Chand) was installed at the National Stadium, New Delhi in 1995, mainly due to the efforts of Pandit Vishwanatha Sharma, the Member of Parliament and the Sports Journalist, R.Sriraman. I travelled to Calcutta to get the Statue carved. I remember the help from Hockey Player M.P.Ganesh, Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao, Mukul Wasnik, and Madhavrao Scindia was among those who spoke on the occasion. The Prime Minister gave a 30 minutes speech. Dhyan Chand had a universal appeal and Narasimha Rao spoke how he would bunk School classes to watch him in action. I cherish that speech. Later in 2002, the 38-acre Stadium was named after him, a great honour.”
(Ashok Kumar, son and Hockey Olympian, in the last Chapter in GOAL, Autobiography of Maj Dhyan Chand)
It is difficult to identify an all-time great Tennis star. In some other popular disciplines, Australian Don Bradman in Cricket and Brazilian Pele and Argentinian Maradona in Football are synonymous with the games.
Indian Wizard Maj Dhyan Chand is the undisputed legend of Hockey of all time. Memoirs by Indian sportsmen are of recent origin and few. Dhyan Chand has written GOAL, published by the Hindu Group, SPORTS STAR, the successor to the popular Sports and Pastime.
The star Hockey Artist, only a school literate, narrates in good English, his participation, experience, and the status of the game in contemporary India and to some extent in the world. He also throws light on the hindsight of the game.
Born at Allahabad on 29th Oct 1905 to a Rajput soldier Someswar Singh, Dhyan Chand’s family later settled at Jhansi. Joining the Army in 1923, as a Sepoy, at the time of retirement in 1956. he rose to become a Major, without special favours.
#Remembering, Hockey legend Maj Dhyan Chand.Thks2 Late Pandit Vishwanath Sharma,ex MP Jhansi & owner Baidyanath, installed majestic statues of “Dadda” as Panditji called him at Sports Complexes at Chandimandir,Sukhna & Hisar coinciding with my comd journey. pic.twitter.com/SJWTYMS9nS
— Lt Gen K J Singh (@kayjay34350) August 29, 2018
“Let nobody make a mistake that in Indian Military life, promotions in ranks were not given on the scale of success in sporting fields.” Such was his devotion to his duty, which admittedly was his breadwinner: a sacred service to the motherland also. On the other hand said, though in a lighter vein, “Had I been in the German Army and Captained the World Hockey Championships Team, Hitler would have made me a Field Marshal!”
“Subedar Major Bale Tiwari of the First Brahmas Regiment initiated me into this game and gave me first lessons”, Dhyan Chand reminiscences.
He pays tribute to Culcutta where the enthusiastic crowd extends unbiased support: “It is a funny city. It is immaterial who plays.” Dhyan acknowledged the encouragement received from the British Officials in the Army and various other state Hockey Associations and individuals.
Interested in Amateur Photography, he pitied himself: “Cameras, fountain pens, gold watches, which the present generation vaunted, never came in my way even in the form of presentation.”
The Wizard remarks with pain: “Game of Hockey was neglected by the historians and statisticians”. Only a few journals reported the events. At every step, Dhyan Chand reminds us that he was a Military Man: “I did not bother much about the selections. I had a very good knack of going to sleep quickly, possibly because I am a military man.”
His first appearance in International Hockey was in 1926, a tour of New Zealand by the Indian Army Team. The Army Team won a majority of the matches and honours were shared in the 3 Tests.
On 26 Feb 1928, the Selectors, under the chairmanship of Maj Burn Murdoch, who will be remembered as long as the Hockey is played in India, selected the Indian Hockey Team, under the Captaincy of Jaipal Singh, an Oxford Blue for the IX Amsterdam Olympic Games 1928.
Dhyan Chand was selected to play in his usual position, forward. In fact, Hockey was reintroduced in the Games at the instance of India. Enroute to Amsterdam, the Team played 11 matches in England, one draw, and won the remaining. From England, the Team proceeded to Holland, Germany and Belgium where they played 7 exhibition matches and won all with comfortable margins.
On May 17 India made its Olympic Debut at Amsterdam by beating Austria by 6-0 margin. On May 26, in the final match, India defeated Holland by three clear goals. In all scoring 29, non scored against India. Dhyan Chand playing in the Forward position netted the highest. As Jaipal Singh was often not available, his deputy, Eric Pinnigar successfully led the Team.
As the fund crunch has always been hanging on the tour expenses, some provincial Associations, particularly Culcutta/Bengal was coming to their rescue.
When the team was selected for 10th Los Angeles Olympics, Punjab National Bank was approached for a loan. It was readily extended. Yet with no hopes of meeting the minimum needs, Charles Newham, a journalist and the founder president of the Punjab Hockey Association approached Mahatma Gandhi to prevail upon the Viceroy to release more funds.
An innocent Gandhiji asked: “What is Hockey?” Newham’s Mission failed. Dhyan Chand draws our attention to a similar situation.
When Charlie Chaplin expressed his Desire to meet Gandhiji during his 1931 stay in England, the people around him had to, first of all, explain who Charlie Chaplin was!
“He’s a famous actor, Bapu.”
Gandhi replied that he did not have time to meet him, and someone, knowing the depth of Chaplin’s radicalism, spoke up, “He’s sympathetic to our cause!” “In that case,” Gandhi replied, “I will meet him.”
Had Newham with the presence of mind answered Gandhiji that we were World Champions and even beat England, perhaps Gandhiji would have responded positively.
Dhyan Chand makes a caustic remark: “You see, even sports had to draw heavily upon the patronage of an alien Government then, and they would have surely have frowned upon any Gandhian tinge streaking across their largesse.”
After playing some matches in India, which added to the funds, the team, Prof Sondhi as Manager, Pankaj Gupta as Asst Manager cum non-playing captain and Goal Keeper, Richard Allen as Vice-Captain the Team left Madras on May 26, 1932, reaching Colombo on 27th and from there set sail on 30th May.
Dhyan Chand was an automatic choice. In Malaysia and Japan, the Team had some time to play exhibition matches. It was a pleasant surprise for the team that a quiet gentleman was their co-passenger on the train from Kobe to Tokyo.
He was none other than the Prime Minister of Japan. Dhyan Chand comments: “We have heard of spartan simplicity of Japanese, from the Emperor downwards. But it was so revealing that even the Prime Minister travelled so quietly and unaccompanied.”
Let us not compare with our counterparts. The Team enjoyed superior Hospitality in Japan. After 42 days’ sailing from Colombo, the team reached San Padro harbour. From there they reached Olympic Village 15 days before the actual commencement of the games. The atmosphere in the Village was congenial and the food and accommodation were more than satisfactory.
The US Vice President Charles Curtis officially declared open the Games on 30 July 1932. The traditional Olympic Parade is lead by Greece which is said to be the inspiration for Games.
The participating countries, with their National Flags, follow in alphabetical order. The host country comes the last. It is history that our team won the Gold, beating the US in the final on 11th August by 24-1. Even the Ramakrishna Mission Branch at Los Angeles supported our Team. In 1935 an Indian Team, consisting of Dhyan Chand visited New Zealand and won all the 48 matches played on the tour.
The last time Dhyan played for India in the Olympics was in Berlin in 1936 as Captain and the leader of the Indian Contingent.
Indian Team sailed on 27th June and reached Berlin on July 13. Maharaja of Mysore, traveling on the same ship supplemented the team’s food with delicious and nutritious curd and vegetables.
The team won all the matches. The final was played on 16 August 1932 against Germany in the presence of Herr Hitler (Hitler was present for Opening Ceremony and Closing Ceremony as well as in between), the Maharaja of Baroda, and Begum of Bhopal.
Due to World War II, 1940 and 1944 games were cancelled. Spectators enjoyed and appreciated the performance of the players from the ‘Land of the Mahatma’. Dhyan Chand captained his last Indian Team that toured South Africa in 1948. In all, he won in three Olympic Medals, scored 39 goals, (an all-time record) and the tally in all the matches he played is 570, astounding!
Every year, Dhyan Chand’s birthday, August 29 is celebrated as National Sports Day in India. On the day, the President of India gives away the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, Arjuna, and Dronacharya awards to sportspersons for their achievements.
Dhyanchand Memorial Hockey Tournament for the youth is conducted. Here and there some roads and colonies are named after him. Dhyan Chand deserves Nationwide Memorials. The best way is to coach Hockey players at the school level in rural India where we have talent and playground.
It s pathetic to note from his son Ashok Kumar that the hockey wizard could not get proper treatment, both physical and psychological in the All India Institute of Medical Sciences during his last days. After his demise on December, 3,1979 the Army arranged to airlift the mortal remains to Jhansi and the cremation with Military Honours!
GOAL cannot be considered an Autobiography in the strict sense. It exclusively deals only his ‘romance’ with Hockey. It would have been a more valuable document if he had thrown some light on contemporary life in the Army and the Country and his family.
He aimed at not only the Hockey Goal but a Goal in life also; ‘transparently honest, sincere and devoted ‘. In the last 60 pages of the volume, the Maestro wrote technical aspects of the game. They are useful tips for the budding stars. Hence GOAL is worth reading and preserving in the Libraries of the Academic Institutions.
“The greatest champions goes the old adage, are those who leave their sport better than they found it.”
