Not too many cricket fans from the 1980s can forget the sight of a fully charged up ‘Haryana Hurricane’ Kapil Dev charging in through his run up to the popping crease and delivering that beautifully orchestrated outswinger. It could be argued that he was among the best, if not ‘the best’ all-rounder of his era with Imran Khan, Richard Hadlee and a few others making up the rest of the group. One thing is for sure, the passion with which Kapil Dev represented India and the competitive spirit with which he played his sport was second to none.
And therefore, in the Ek Nayi League teaser promo videos (http://www.eknayileague.com) that are doing the rounds nowadays, when he mentions that something new is coming up which will probably involve leading sportspersons and other celebrities competing with something more than just passion, then it really does give food for thought.
Here are my guesses at what the Nayi League might be about.
A celebrity golf league
Given Kapil’s penchant for the sport post his retirement (if I am not mistaken he even played a couple of competitive seasons in the Indian golf circuits), it could very well be possible that he intends to promote a new celebrity golf league. As it is the sport attracts more than its fair share of prize money worldwide and enough blue chip brands already flock to sponsor golf tournaments around the globe, and it would therefore be a no-brainer that a celebrity golf league would surely attract more than its fair share of eyeballs in the country.
And the fact that Kapil keeps mentioning agar dil se kheloge toh hit wicket ho jaaoge makes me doubly sure that he is indeed talking about the sport of golf, where each competitor basically plays against himself and his own best scores rather than competing with each other.
A celebrity quiz competition
I have been a quizzer during my school and college days and know for a fact that quizzing as a competitive sport is anything but dil se. It is purely a dimaag only type of endeavor and requires competitors to be at their sharpest bit throughout the competition. Kapil’s frequent dil se mat khelo makes me suspect that his new league might even be something of this sort.
All said and done, the fact remains that Kapil Dev’s open invitation to MSD, Yuvi, Sania Mirza, Kapil Sharma (of Comedy Nights fame) to wait and watch as to what his nayi league is all about surely builds up enough and more anticipation for all sports fans across the country. And given that it is Kapil Dev who is promoting the same means that much more to all of us who have respected the passion and competitive spirit with which he represented the country.
So here’s wishing for a dhuaan dhaar nayi league from Kapil Paaji.
