When a lot of us were growing up, one of the first things we imbibed from Western History is the usage of the acronyms BC and AD. The reason revolves around how Christianity is so deeply embedded in a lot of the Western powers and thus, their religion’s pre-eminence to denote a ‘before’ and an ‘after’ Christ. But beyond definition, the idea of BC and AD is also embedded in the psyche because it represents a marker in history.
Cut to 70mm, the movie Godfather represents a before and after in their cinematic experience; for Indian cricket, the year 1983 represents the dividing line between a game the nation took an interest towards and the game that became an obsession; in the storied career of Sir Alex Ferguson, the clock ticking down at the Camp Nou in 1999 was, for many, a before and an after. These experiences in history are unique because it constitutes those rare instances when one can truly feel that they were a part of history, that the experience is so special that repeating their own versions of it are considered almost natural.

And for Sport on India’s 70mm, the nation will unanimously agree that 1992’s Jo Jeeta Woh Sikander represented a before and an after.
Let’s give it some historical context. When the Mansoor Khan directed movie was making its debut, across the country, India had already been enamoured by Cricket for well over a decade. In fact, a few months prior to Jo Jeeta’s release, a precocious young Mumbaikar had played in his first Cricket World Cup and added to an already burgeoning list of superlatives. So, wouldn’t it make all the sense of the world grand climax on the Cricket field? Shouldn’t Sanju Sharma have practised his right-arm fast-medium instead of speeding downwards on a mountain pass?
But it didn’t and we are all glad it didn’t.
This nonconformist take echoed throughout the movie – symbolized by the lyrics, ‘jo sab karte hain yaaron vo kyon hum tum karein” – is a take that would’ve ushered millions of likes from today’s millennial. The protagonist isn’t your do-gooder living by some code, nor is he the quintessential all-rounder that academic institutions treat like gold dust; instead, a carefree lad who lives life as he pleases and in all honesty, he is the black sheep in the family. But where it evolves into the sporting narrative is as it is in innumerable sports stories – both in fiction and in real life – there is always that moment when someone changes their errant ways and focuses on Sport, dedicates their mind and soul to the craft and makes something happen that remains etched in everyone’s minds.
For Sanju, that moment to reflect and change boiled down to his brother Ratan’s accident.
The other aspect of the movie which will resonate powerfully with any football fan in 2018 is the fight against those who’ve always had the resources – mostly money – and those who’ve always had the heart. This plays out wonderfully in the foothills of the Himalayas as the intensity of inter-college competition is brought to the fore but in the backdrop, it is quite clear that the narrative of rich vs resourceful is playing out seamlessly in the narrative. The students from Rajput are every bit the super club, rich, arrogant and very aware of how society perceives them; the students from the Model school are from modest backgrounds, and they are always on the lookout to get one over the ‘aristocracy’.
In two separate incidents, this plays out wonderfully. In the first race, Ratan loses a right race against his bête noire, Shekhar, not because he was inferior as a racer, not because of poor preparation, instead, it was because of a failed bike. Not the lesser man, just the man on the lesser machine.
But the greatest achievement of the Jo Jeeta team, cast, director, et al, managed is in managing to tell a story that was set in 1992 but in a microcosm represents a growing India breaking free of its shackles, breaking free of the status quo and not falling prey to formulaic storytelling, especially when seen through the lens of Sport. Whilst some people will see Jo Jeeta as more drama than Sport, the argument can be made here that Jo Jeeta told a sporting story that would resonate with almost any Sports fan belonging to any age, the triumph of a good for nothing over the powers-that-be; where all the grit and determination is to beat your opponent but each time the wheel turns, it is also for something better, something bigger, for a different tomorrow.
This is why as Sports fans; it makes all the sense in the world to revisit this timeless film and acknowledge the tremendous contribution it made towards bringing together Sport, School, and Society. The year 2017 was the 25th anniversary of Jo Jeeta and in this ensuing period, there have been excellent successors in the form of Lagaan, Dangal and Chak De India, but if there is one thing that half a century hasn’t done is displace Jo Jeeta’s unique position as a marker in both cinematic and sporting history.
First, there was Jo Jeeta Wahi Sikander. Then there was everything else.

At the heart of the Indian sporting scene is a contradiction. On one hand, you have seen India’s sports story weaving many a unique tale where it’s not all about eleven men on a cricket field, where corporates have come on board — in their various capacities — in increasing numbers to provide investment and opportunities. This has given rise to a plethora of leagues wherein Indians are able to consume sport that is decidedly diverse and engaging at the same time.
On the other hand, the captain of your nation’s football team, Sunil Chhetri, is asking fans for support before a match.
Whilst the truth of the matter is that the nation’s sporting scene has grown by leaps and bounds, why is it still in a state where such an anomaly — the Chhetri message — can exist in plain sight? The reason has to come down to a lack of sporting culture. Now, this isn’t to state that there is a complete absence of culture everywhere, as that is simply untrue. West Bengal and Goa have a rich history of producing footballing talent; Punjab has always been a hotbed for hockey; the North-Eastern states produce champions from across the aisle, be it football, wrestling, boxing; Tamil Nadu has been a conveyor belt for Grandmasters.
No, the absence here is that of a collective sporting culture where we don’t just get behind our teams but more broadly, we get behind sport itself; where our outpouring of joy isn’t restricted to the Olympics or the World Cup. Rather, it is shared throughout the year.
In order to instill this, we need to encourage sport at a grassroots level. Brands have always got behind athletes from a marketing point of view — brand endorsements, event promotions, cause-marketing — as this feels like smart investing, but thankfully, they’ve also come to the realisation that getting behind the ecosystem is even smarter investing. At the confluence of sport and society is the veritable sweet spot but in order to capitalise, corporates have to show ample patience and — as the Philadelphia 76ers preach so passionately in the NBA — they have to ‘trust the process’.
But for the doubters, the primary questions are always, ‘But can it work?’ and ‘Can we get together and help the sporting scene even if the immediate signs aren’t reassuring?’
To answer these questions, let’s look at two unique instances. The city of Bengaluru has never been known for its exploits in football. Through the 90’s and early 2000’s, the city’s football was represented by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. Yet, it is in this city that India’s most interesting football experiment is paying huge dividends. Bengaluru FC is not just the best football club in the country, it is also the best managed.  But on their journey, BFC has also elevated the footballing ecosystem in the city — from the fans to the stadium, the training and right down to their approach to grassroots.
The other unique instance was brought about thanks to India’s entrepreneurs wanting to make a difference. When Mark Dharmai — a para-badminton shuttler — wanted to take part in an international event in Thailand, he was short of funds and needed help. This is where Mark was able to team up with Fueladream — a crowdfunding platform — and raise awareness around para-sports whilst also making a plea to him raise funds. The campaign proved to be a tremendous success as Indians got together to help Mark and for his part, the shuttler didn’t disappoint, winning a silver medal. The burgeoning entrepreneurial ecosystem has played the key-role of a problem solver but it also comes down to providing that tiny bit of support, which to you and I might feel tiny, but to the athlete, our gestures, support, could magnify exponentially. Today, Mark is one of the best para-badminton players on the planet and maybe, brands need to help more Marks.
With the Olympics in Tokyo only two years away, the glare of the cameras will focus on our athletes and rightfully so. But let us not forget the ones who don’t make it as their stories are just as much a part of the Indian sporting story for their stories are a better representation of what happens in sport: an incredibly crystalised version of survival of the fittest. When we think of an improvement, it could be in these stories — defeat at the eleventh hour, lack of funding, impatience in the face of a genuine talent — that we can really learn and build our culture and in the process, our sporting future.
And it can be bright, very bright.

Sport is unique in the sense that it can mould itself into a teacher, an intrinsic quality that should make it essential as a tool for education. In the course of one competitive match, a child can learn to take responsibility, to respect an opponent and to also play the role of a leader. But sport does this in a competitive landscape, thus making it more engaging than the everyday lesson in the classroom.

As a country that prioritizes academic success with such intensity, the need of the hour is for education to evolve outside of a ‘classroom-driven mindset’. The windfall from incentivising sport as an educative tool will not only allow parents and students to understand Sport at a core, it will also set in motion the desperate cultural shift that is at the centre of any sporting powerhouse.

In this regard, the Government of India’s Khelo India initiative has the potential to be a game-changer for the country not just from a cultural standpoint – encouraging ‘play’ as a daily activity for kids – but also from an education standpoint where parents and students can learn and understand sport as an educative experience. This will also drive home the potential for success on the field, acting as a precursor to the success in the classroom and even life.

Since sport can be utterly transformative and double-up as a powerful agent of empowerment, it’s important to encourage more children to pick up a sport. We, at IndusInd Bank, have realized the importance of encouraging sport at an early stage where apart from supporting sporting talent, we believe in the holistic development of a child.

IndusInd Bank Girl Power Programme is one such initiative. The programme, in association with Inspire Institute of Sports – the sporting arm of JSW, identifies young budding female athletes, spread across the country, across 6 sport disciples and provides a tailor-made programme that includes high-level coaching, intense education curriculum and holistic strength and conditioning programme which helps the athletes to evolve into a confident sportswoman with an aim to #WinLikeAGirl.