Except cricket other sports get step motherly treatment:Nisha

Mumbai, Oct 23 (UNI) Except cricket, all other sports in our country get step motherly treatment. Even if our men in blue lase ten matches and win only one they get a here's welcome, but even if we win for our country nobody writes about it, says Nisha Nair aka Soi Moi from Jharkhand who was part of the hockey team in the film 'Chak De'.

In an exclusive chat with UNI Nisha Nair, who has been playing hockey for the past eight years rues the state of affairs of Hockey.

" Nobody knew that hockey was our national game they used to think cricket was,"she says. But after 'Chak De' they know how important it is. However, things will take time at the grass roots level. It will take about five years for things to get better.

Movies play a big role, the media should create awareness, she says.

She gives an example of the apathy towards other sports as she says ''We went to Latur for a match. There was no arrangement for our accommodation, boarding and lodging. We went there for a state tournament, we hunted for a room, we cleaned the bathroom and we also went one km to pump one bucket of water per person. The food was awful.It was bad for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Despite that when we won the tournament and came home, nobody knew about it.'' Each game like volley ball, basket ball, hockey, swimming has its own beauty. If funds are given and sponsors come forward each sport will get recognition. When players do everything, make the country proud and they don't get credit, they get frustrated and leave.

She however, has very good memories of shooting for the Yashraj flick 'Chak De'. It was a great experience working with Shah Rukh Khan. He never behaved like a star, and also taught us how to face the camera as we were new. Before the shooting of the film Shah Rukh came to the Bombay Hockey Association and played with us, she says.

Nisha adds, the casting was perfect as each player was an individual. Shimit Amin and Richa, the Assistant Director had gone to the Sports Authority of India (all over India) to scout for talent. Nethra Reddy's mother (the no 11 player in the film) sent the Bombay Team's photo to Yashraj and we were selected.

For the matches they stayed in Melbourne in Australia and there were players from the Victoria team who played at the state level.

The entire team was in Sydney for 15 days for the final match.

Nisha, who claims that there were no any problems among the players themselves contrary to reports in the media, shares a good rapport with them. She is currently studying at the St Andrews College in Bandra, in the third Year B Com and is preparing for her University exams while her other teammate Chitrashi aka Komal Chautala is in the same college studying in her First Year Bachelors in Mass Media (BMM).

UNI