Cricket and all that jazz
The Bangalore skyline saw plenty of psychedelic hi-jinks when the IPL cricket tournament kicked off tonight. I cant help thinking this whole thing is more tamaasha than sport. Not that I am complaining. All that razzmatazz - dancers on stilts, fairies inside bubbles, trapeze artists swinging down to the field, it was one hell of a show! And the cricket-crazy Indian audiences anyway make it an electrifying atmosphere.
But then I am one of those armchair audiences who watch cricket from the couch at home. So, while the tech city's Royal Challengers got clobbered, I tore my hair out frustrated with all that onscreen TV advertising. The screen splits up sometimes or shrinks in to a small window while multi-color graphic vines creep across the margins trailing "Godrej". Or worse, stick figure pop out from the edges and break into ridiculous jigs hoping to prompt viewers to subscribe for Vodafone alerts.
I was expecting atleast one Shahrukh Khan sighting. He didn't come in for a studio interview but one caught sight of him in the stands. As the match progressed and the Kolkata Knight Riders rode rough-shod over their opposition, King Khan couldn't contain himself. He was enthusiastically cheering his side on, almost falling over the balcony.
After the match, a roving TV journo got a pack of noisy fans to reveal (no, scream) who they had been rooting for. They shrieked that they were from Bangalore. And then, they shrieked a little louder that they had been rooting for SRK (and his Kolkata Knight Riders) all evening. Now, thats something I am going to wonder about all through this tournament. With each of the teams being such a total pot pourri of players from all regions and countries, how on earth does one draw out loyalty lines? Imagine MS Dhoni and Chennai! The man probably knows nothing about Chennai city apart from the Chepauk stadium. But he's going to have Chennai Super King emblazoned across his chest. I guess this is what they call professional cricket. One plays for the game. And, at IPL, lets not forget the crores.
But then I am one of those armchair audiences who watch cricket from the couch at home. So, while the tech city's Royal Challengers got clobbered, I tore my hair out frustrated with all that onscreen TV advertising. The screen splits up sometimes or shrinks in to a small window while multi-color graphic vines creep across the margins trailing "Godrej". Or worse, stick figure pop out from the edges and break into ridiculous jigs hoping to prompt viewers to subscribe for Vodafone alerts.
I was expecting atleast one Shahrukh Khan sighting. He didn't come in for a studio interview but one caught sight of him in the stands. As the match progressed and the Kolkata Knight Riders rode rough-shod over their opposition, King Khan couldn't contain himself. He was enthusiastically cheering his side on, almost falling over the balcony.
After the match, a roving TV journo got a pack of noisy fans to reveal (no, scream) who they had been rooting for. They shrieked that they were from Bangalore. And then, they shrieked a little louder that they had been rooting for SRK (and his Kolkata Knight Riders) all evening. Now, thats something I am going to wonder about all through this tournament. With each of the teams being such a total pot pourri of players from all regions and countries, how on earth does one draw out loyalty lines? Imagine MS Dhoni and Chennai! The man probably knows nothing about Chennai city apart from the Chepauk stadium. But he's going to have Chennai Super King emblazoned across his chest. I guess this is what they call professional cricket. One plays for the game. And, at IPL, lets not forget the crores.
Comments