Am I allowed clothes inside

We have always heard what a nightmarish experience watching cricket in India is. The whole experience I had today, just reiterated the fact that the most important stakeholder of the game in India - the cricket crazy audience - is the most ignored as well.

The setting was for the Ranji Trophy finals between Mumbai and Uttar Pradesh at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Uppal, Hyderabad. I am currently working in the Hitech city area, that's near Kondapur, a good 30 km from the stadium. During my whole trip to India, I have been trying to catch a cricket match of some sort live at the stadium. I realized yesterday that today was the Pongal holiday, and this being a fairly big festival down here, the business would be slow in office. So I made plans to come to office early and then catch the post lunch session at the stadium. I figured out the buses I had to take, number 122K to Koti and then 115 to Uppal, both about 45 minute rides.

I remember watching South Zone take on North Zone in Deodhar Trophy, the inter-zonal ODI tourney down at Nehru stadium in Pune four seasons ago. It was a fairly friendly affair then for the spectators. You had to show up at the ground and were allowed free entry. But considering the tighter security measures these days, I decided to be more vigilant. I wanted to click some snaps this time, but wasn't sure if I was going to be allowed a camera inside. So I decided to call someone. But I had to decide who that someone would be. I figured out that it should be the Hyderabad Cricket Association, to whom the stadium is affiliated. Here is where I got the number. I must say someone has done a decent job over there. So I kept dialing the whole evening yesterday and in the morning today. I thought I wouldn't get to them due to the Pongal holiday. So then came the next one in the hierarchy, the legendary BCCI. Well this is how the contact us page of the world's richest cricket board looks like. Since it is fairly synonymous these days with Mumbai Cricket Association, I decided to try them. They are here. I went through the whole list of honoraries, (yes everyone is honorary, the only executive is right at the bottom) and not a single one picked up at 10.15 am. I managed to get through at DDCA (Delhi and District Cricket Association) and the voice over there told me that they generally don't allow cameras for international games, but no one cares about Ranji Trophy. He asked me to confirm with the Hyderabad Cricket Association.

Finally I got through to HCA at 10.30am, and confirmed that cameras and cellphones were indeed allowed inside. He also informed that the entry was free and I expected it to be as friendly as the one in Pune. So there I was, all pumped up with my 10x zoom, hoping to frame the glimpses of a Zaheer Khan swinger, or maybe a wave by the maestro towards attention-hungry fans. Having taken a one and half hour journey through two typical Andhra Pradesh transport buses (buses in Maharashtra are luxury rides in comparison), I met a queue outside the stadium. And what does the cop tell me? That everyone with a camera or a cellphone should get lost. I pleaded on, told them that they could scan my items and then let them in. But he just wouldn't budge. The official from HCA recognized me over the phone again, but his only explanation was, "they did allow everything inside till yesterday, they might have changed the rules today.", basically just washing his hands off it.

Imagine a game where Patriots take on Giants in the NFL finals, well probably not a fair comparison, as the money involved and the stakes are way higher. But that's the irony in India, the higher the stakes, the more unfriendly and high-handed the authorities. We just keep killing a fan's ability to have some fun, for our inability to handle them. And I am not even touching upon more basic needs like shelter from Sun, water and sewage facilities. Some say they have improved, but a lot more needs to be done. And it won't be done unless the richest board in the world cares more about its biggest stakeholder.

Well you would think I would be angry as hell after this, wouldn't you? But I have spent more than a month now in India. I don't know if it is that or the "without lemon without ginger without ice" cane juice I had, I have just lost my ability to be angry, it just is a quiet frustration at the helplessness. Probably that is what is called "Spirit".