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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.

Melody man

Updated: Mar 3, 2025

Sarod maestro Anupam Shobhakar talks to 'The Perfect Voice' about his instrument KaliMa and how music transcends all barriers and boundaries

Anupam Shobhakar

In a rich gathering of music and art, the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival saw music maestro Anupam Shobhakar perform, treating audiences to his beautiful blend of Indian and Western music. The Brooklyn-based composer, record producer and sarodist will mark Holi with a new album, Liquid Reality that combines the Hindustani classical tradition with global sounds.


He’s invented the KaliMa, an instrument that combines the guitar with the sarod. In a conversation with The Perfect Voice, Shobhakar talks about music transcending barriers of language and region.


Can the sarod play western music?

It’s totally incumbent on the musician behind the instrument. No instrument plays Indian or western music on its own. I would encourage a deep listen to an album called, Still Point: Turning World. This was a collaboration between me and guitarist Joel Harrison. The meeting of eastern and western ideas goes quite deep in it. We tried to stay away from the shallow, exotic ways these things are done sometimes by musicians from all styles. I follow that mantra myself — learn and respect all music equally.


How does music transcend barriers and boundaries?

Music is one of the only mediums that does so. It’s the very reflection of human existence. You can have two people of totally opposite cultures in terms of language or food or appearance but if they have instruments, they will communicate musically and a bridge will be born. This is a profound thing. Even animals respond to music. It’s truly a transcendent medium of communication.


What's the concept of Liquid Reality?

Liquid Reality is my new album coming out on AGS recordings and I’m very excited for it. As a global musician and composer, it really highlights the ethos of international unity for me as I live in the most diverse part of the world culturally which is New York City. It features very diverse music from a modern adaptation of ghazal to a reshaped shakti classic to fiery duos for guitar and kanjira to deep episodic Brazilian inspired music. It has some of the greatest players and improvisers alive today.


When you collaborate with artistes who excel in different forms of music, how do you manage to put diverse styles and sounds together?

It all comes down to the writing and the integrity of your ideas and aesthetic evolution. I don’t like to think of music as any different from how one puts food together. If you have good taste - your food will taste good. Music and art in general are very similar.


What exactly is the KaliMa and how does it help you express your music?

KaliMa is my new fretted and fretless double-neck guitar. Being a child of both worlds, of western and eastern musically, it was very important for me to have an instrument that covers both universes. Now from my sarod repertoire to my western rock and jazz influences - the KaliMa helps me cover it all. As for the name - my family have been Kali worshippers for generations. I wanted to honour their legacy by naming the instrument KaliMa. This instrument was commissioned in 2023 and made by a wonderful luthier from Istanbul, Turkiye by the name of Ave Guitars. He’s a one-man Stradivarius when it comes to guitar building and given how young he is, his skill is unparalleled globally according to me.


How does it create sounds that are similar to Indian and western music?

The sounds any instrument creates are up to the instrumentalist. If I want to play a two-hour rendition of say Raga Marwa on it KaliMa allows me to do just that. If I want to explore deep western harmony or just go all out playing rock and metal, the KaliMa allows and blesses that side too.


What kind of music have you created on the KaliMa?

My new Album Liquid Reality is entirely composed on the KaliMa. I have been playing Indian classical concerts all over the world on it and my trio called the Kalki trio as well with Swami selva Ganesh on kanjira and Amit Mishra on tabla. The music tends to flow more naturally for me through this instrument I call KaliMa.


What inspires your music?

I don’t think I have any external inspiration because music is pretty awe inspiring to begin with. If my mind is at ease - the music flows naturally for me. The challenge and craft come into capturing the ideas and then setting them free!

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