Category: articles by Shailaza Singh

Name the game which is played on horse back and the goal posts are changed every time a player scores a goal? Name the game which was once played only by royalty but now is slowly becoming a passion with the masses? Yes, you’ve guessed it right! It is Polo, the game of the fast and the furious which is played on horseback. 

For Jai Singh and Vikramaditya Singh, the owners of Polo Factory, the brand that manufactures polo equipment, polo is not just a game but a way of life for the players and the people associated with them. Explains Jai, ‘There are four players in a team. Each polo player has to have at least five to six ponies. Each of these horses needs a groom which means a lot of employment since these horses need all the infrastructure like stables etc.’

So, does this imply that people who can afford to buy and maintain these horses can only play the game? ‘Not in this day and age,’ says Jai. ‘Some players come from the 61st Cavalry, which is known for producing well known polo players like Colonel Kuldeep Gurcha. Now new players who are talented but do not have the resources often find patrons, people who are passionate about the game and have the horses. A good example is Abhimanyu Pathak, one of India’s top players who started out as a call center executive and supported his dream for playing polo by learning horse riding.’

So, where do these players get the horses from? Jai says, ‘Some of the horses come with the players of the 61st Cavalary of the Indian Army, while others are retired race horses. Then there are organizations like Polo Clubs and individuals who import horses from countries like Argentina, England, New Zealand which are the hub of international polo.’

So, where all in India is polo played? Jai says, ‘It was once played in Kolkata but now that circuit is inactive. Besides Jaipur, which has 13 big polo grounds, and is a favorite hub for the polo lovers, Mumbai, Delhi and Bengaluru circuits are also active.’

We talked and watched the players like Padmanabh Singh, the erstwhile maharaja of Jaipur, Sidhanth Singh battle it out along with their teams in the first match of the Amateur Cup, which is being organized by Polofactory. In this tournament, there are two pools A and B. Each pool comprises of three teams. Chandna Group, Kanota and RRPC form the pool A while Bikaner Polo, PoloFactory, Polo Inn and Suites form the pool B.

Jai beckoned a photographer who was busy shooting the players. He told me that the photographer R K Singh is perhaps the only one who has been exclusively shooting polo matches all over India for the last 25 years. When I quizzed him on his passion to capture polo, he said, ‘I love action and in polo matches there are no retake. So, I like the thrill of capturing the moment.’

Rajvi Shailender Singh, a well-known player believes that Jaipur has the best crowd when it comes to polo because the polo matches that are organized in Jaipur are always open for the public as compared to Delhi where one needs passes to watch a polo match. ‘Most people who come to watch the game know the rules, the fouls and the players. There are some veterans in the crowds who even know the name of the horses.’

Polo comes with its own share of interesting and amusing incidents for its players. Rajvi Shailendra Singh narrates an interesting incident, ‘In 2000, when I was playing a game in Delhi, my horse froze in the middle of a game. I tried to make it move but to now avail. I looked up and saw the entire team coming towards me on their horses. They were so involved in the game that even though I shouted and told them to watch out, no body paid any attention. So, finally, I had no option but to jump off my horse and run to save my life. The moment I jumped off, the horse sprang into action and ran off in the opposite direction. Now the incident sounds funny but that time it was the scariest moment of my life.’

Jay concludes, ‘Polo is a sport that is a combination of skill, speed and agility. Now with the young blood coming in it has become even more attractive for people who love to ride horses and play this fast and furious game.’

The Polofactory Amateur Cup is being played at the Polofactory Yard, Dhankya in Jaipur till November 17, 2019. The entry is free for all. The first match of today will be played between Kanota/RRPC and Benaz Corp. In the second match, Polo Inn and Suites will battle it out with Bikaner Polo.

Shailaza Singh’s article was published in Rashtradoot Newspaper’s Arbit Section on November 13, 2019

 A peak into the world of IIT, Jodhpur is not just about endless studying but also pursuing and developing passions for a lifetime.

The very mention of the word IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) conjures up different scenes from Aamir Khan’s movie ‘Three Idiots’ . For most people, IIT is a stressful place where students are kept constantly on their tenterhooks or are incessantly cramming from their text books for an upcoming exam or practical. That is the impression I had before I visited IIT, Jodhpur fondly known as IIT-J.

I had been invited by the students of IIT- J to participate in a panel discussion about paid news, which was just one of the events which was organized as a part of Aaftaab, a two-day literature festival. The other events included a kavi sammelan where famous poets like Sampat Saral, , a book launch by Arpit Vageria, creative writing workshop by Ishita Dey and a performance by the band Exile Diaries and much more. Nivedit Jain, who had initially contacted regarding my participation in the event told me that he could only speak to me in evenings since he and his classmates were busy attending lectures and lab sessions in the day. When I inquired, he told me that their lectures sometimes continue even till 8 or 9 in the evening.

When I reached on the first day, I saw many students attending these lectures. There were some who were busy making notes in the library. In my experience, literature or all such festivals in colleges meant that the academics were brought to a standstill. However, this was not the case here.

Shubham Pandey, a faculty of chemistry in IIT-J said, ‘We always encourage the students to pursue their passion while studying. We tell them to take up at least one additional activity like singing, writing, film making which helps to take off the pressure of the studies. In these festivals, the students not only manage the festival but also continue their day-to-day studies because we believe students or anyone for that matter can develop multi-tasking as an ability.’

Parichay Batra, who is a part of the department of humanities and social sciences and teaches film making in IIT-J opined, ‘Every student is required to select at least four humanities subjects from a long list of electives every year. Some students choose film making, others choose newly introduced subjects like digital humanities or digital publishing or social connect as their electives. ‘

I wondered why was it important for a student to choose these additional humanities subjects when he was already grappling with his regular subjects in the institute. Parichay Batra said, ‘You have to understand that preparing for IIT entrance examination is no mean feat. The students forgo all their hobbies and passions for a year or two just to ace this examination and get into IIT. Now, when they come here, it is important for us to help them rediscover their passion along with their regular curriculum so that their creativity is not lost in all this pressure. Hence, we have a very active student gymkhana which has different societies like the literary society or photography society or the cultural society and many more which help students to focus on their passion. In fact, there have been some students who discovered their passion for film making after taking an elective film making course in IIT. They then completed their four-year B.Tech course and cleared the entrance exam for FTII (Film and Television Institute of India) to become film makers. ’

I saw the students enjoying all the events in the literature festival with fervor. They cheered in the Kavi Sammelan and participated in the discussion and also sang with the band.

As I bid adieu to the students of IIT, Jodhpur, a thought came to my mind. Perhaps if director Rajkumar Hirani was to remake ‘3 Idiots’ again today, his protagonist Farhan Qureshi played by R. Madhavan would not have had to drop out of IIT to pursue his passion for photography on the behest of Aamir Khan’s Rancho.

Shailaza Singh’s article was published in Rashtradoot Newspaper’s Arbit Section on November 17, 2019