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By:

Bhalchandra Chorghade

11 August 2025 at 1:54:18 pm

Applause for Cricket, Silence for Badminton

Mumbai: When Lakshya Sen walked off the court after the final of the All England Badminton Championships, he carried with him the disappointment of another near miss. The Indian shuttler went down in straight games to Lin Chun-Yi, who created history by becoming the first player from Chinese Taipei to lift the prestigious title. But the story of Lakshya Sen’s defeat is not merely about badminton final. It is also about the contrasting way India celebrates its sporting heroes. Had the same...

Applause for Cricket, Silence for Badminton

Mumbai: When Lakshya Sen walked off the court after the final of the All England Badminton Championships, he carried with him the disappointment of another near miss. The Indian shuttler went down in straight games to Lin Chun-Yi, who created history by becoming the first player from Chinese Taipei to lift the prestigious title. But the story of Lakshya Sen’s defeat is not merely about badminton final. It is also about the contrasting way India celebrates its sporting heroes. Had the same narrative unfolded on a cricket field, the reaction would have been dramatically different. In cricket, even defeat often becomes a story of heroism. A hard-fought loss by the Indian team can dominate television debates, fill newspaper columns and trend across social media for days. A player who narrowly misses a milestone is still hailed for his fighting spirit. The nation rallies around its cricketers not only in victory but also in defeat. The narrative quickly shifts from the result to the effort -- the resilience shown, the fight put up, the promise of future triumph. This emotional investment is one of the reasons cricket enjoys unparalleled popularity in India. It has built a culture where players become household names and their performances, good or bad, become part of the national conversation. Badminton Fights Contrast that with what happens in sports like badminton. Reaching the final of the All England Championships is a monumental achievement. The tournament is widely considered badminton’s equivalent of Wimbledon in prestige and tradition. Only the very best players manage to reach its final stages, and doing it twice speaks volumes about Lakshya Sen’s ability and consistency. Yet the reaction in India remained largely subdued. There were congratulatory posts, some headlines acknowledging the effort and brief discussions among badminton enthusiasts. But the level of national engagement never quite matched the magnitude of the achievement. In a cricketing context, reaching such a stage would have triggered days of celebration and analysis. In badminton, it often becomes just another sports update. Long Wait India’s wait for an All England champion continues. The last Indian to win the title was Pullela Gopichand in 2001. Before him, Prakash Padukone had scripted history in 1980. These victories remain among the most significant milestones in Indian badminton. And yet, unlike cricketing triumphs that are frequently revisited and celebrated, such achievements rarely stay in the mainstream sporting conversation for long. Lakshya Sen’s journey to the final should ideally have been viewed as a continuation of that legacy, a reminder that India still possesses the talent to challenge the world’s best in badminton. Instead, it risks fading quickly from public memory. Visibility Gap The difference ultimately comes down to visibility and cultural investment. Cricket in India is not merely a sport; it is an ecosystem built over decades through media attention, sponsorship, and mass emotional attachment. Individual sports, on the other hand, often rely on momentary bursts of recognition, usually during Olympic years or when a medal is won. But consistent performers like Lakshya Sen rarely receive the sustained spotlight that their achievements deserve. This disparity can also influence the next generation. Young athletes are naturally drawn to sports where success brings recognition, financial stability and national fame. When one sport monopolises the spotlight, others struggle to build similar appeal. Beyond Result Lakshya Sen may have finished runner-up again, but his performance at the All England Championship is a reminder that India continues to produce world-class athletes in disciplines beyond cricket. The real issue is not that cricket receives immense attention -- it deserves the admiration it gets. The concern is that athletes from other sports often do not receive comparable appreciation for achievements that are equally significant in their own arenas. If India aspires to become a truly global sporting nation, its applause must grow broader. Sporting pride cannot remain confined to one field. Because somewhere on a badminton court, an athlete like Lakshya Sen is fighting just as hard for the country’s colours as any cricketer on a packed stadium pitch. The only difference is how loudly the nation chooses to cheer.

Heritage Rekindled

This year’s Diwali marks a landmark moment for Ayodhya. On this Diwali, Ayodhya glowed not just with the warmth of tradition but with a profound sense of fulfilment as over 2.5 million diyas lit up the banks of the Saryu, entering the Guinness World Records in the first ‘Deepotsav’ since the consecration of the long-awaited Ram Temple. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s ceremonial lighting of the first lamps, the laser and drone shows bringing scenes from the Ramayana to life, and cultural showcases from across Asia made the event an awe-inspiring fusion of history, faith and nationalism.


Yet, this Diwali celebration in Ayodhya is more than a grand event; it symbolizes a 500-year wait and struggle, one that tested the resilience of millions who held fast to their beliefs despite decades of legal and ideological hurdles. Amid all the bitter legal and communal wrangling since the demolition of the Bari Mosque in 1992, the historical evidence, from as early as the 16th century, indubitably points to Hindu devotion at the site where generations gathered with unwavering faith even when the Babri Masjid had stood in place of a temple. Notably, historians like Meenakshi Jain and archaeologist K.K. Muhammad have documented the sacred significance of the site to Hindus over the centuries, countering narratives that aimed to dilute the importance of the Ram Janmabhoomi.


As legal battles raged on, the case became entangled in a web of political, ideological, and scholarly contentions.


Leftist scholars in India and their counterparts in the West have sought to reframe the temple’s significance, even proposing the provocative thesis that temple destruction was a widespread “established practice” among pre-Turkic Hindus themselves. This narrative, which has drawn both criticism and controversy, has done little to weaken the Hindu resolve. Rather, it only sharpened the symbolic struggle for Ram’s birthplace — a struggle that transcended legal battles and reached into the hearts of millions.


This year, Diwali at Ayodhya reverberates not only as a religious festival but as a victory against a backdrop of scepticism and suppression. Prime Minister Modi spoke to the historical importance of this moment, celebrating it as a homecoming not after 14 years of exile, as in the Ramayana, but after five centuries of waiting. For Ayodhya, this Diwali represents an arrival, not just of Lord Ram to his home but of a powerful vindication of faith long delayed. As the diyas flicker in the evening breeze, they reflect the hopes and aspirations of a community that has long yearned for recognition and reverence.


Ayodhya’s glow this year is a testament to the perseverance of a people who fought not for power or political advantage, but for recognition of a heritage they refused to let slip into obscurity. In their eyes, this Diwali symbolizes not merely the lighting of lamps but the long-awaited dawn after a historical darkness.

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