Soccer Phenomenon

Bicharpur village in tribal-dominated Shahdol division has earned the moniker of 'Mini-Brazil', having sent 60-70 players to state team as a grassroots level 'Football Kranti' ushers in young talents into the sport, Anuraag Singh reports

- Anuraag Singh

N the rare occasions when he could arrange a pair of old, worn-out shoes from one of his friends, young Shankar, the lone son of a landless Dalit labourer family, did not have to play barefoot. One would see him darting around the soccer field, commanding the play at any position he played, until in 2010, Shankar Dahiya was selected to the Madhya Pradesh U-15 team as its first-choice goalkeeper.

"Thereafter, I played for various teams in Shahdol district and also at state level, besides completing a three-year Bachelor of Physical Education (BPEd) course. But viable jobs as coach eluded me, forcing me to work at a hotel in Shahdol city on night shift, which would fetch ₹5,000 monthly," Shankar, now 29 years of age, recalls.

From the same Shahdol district in eastern MP, prodigious central defender Lakshami Sahees played for the state in nine national football tournaments between 2007 and 2012 in various age groups.

But unable to bear the agony of unemployment despite a postgraduate degree in Sociology, she worked 10 hours daily at a garment store for ₹5,000 monthly, which often prompted her parents to question what wonders playing soccer actually did for her?

The frustration of Lakshami, Shankar and many other talented former national players from Bicharpur village and other villages of Shahdol district ended in 2021-22, when erstwhile Shahdol divisional commissioner Rajiv Sharma, embarked on a unique initiative 'Football Kranti' (FK) inspired by West Bengal's successful model in three districts—Shahdol, Anuppur and Umaria.