In the previous, each time he crossed Marine Drive, Vasant Mohite, a 57-year-old groundsman at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium, would surprise what it was like to remain in one of many luxurious motels alongside the seaside promenade. It was a dream past his means.
But this IPL season, that dream has come true, with confectionery firm Cadbury deciding to supply five-star lodging to reward the unsung floor employees. They have additionally been given uniforms designed by celeb designer Masaba, meals, and a bus to ferry them from the lodge to the bottom and again.
Vasant Mohite says he has been lucky to have watched some legendary gamers from shut quarters.“A miracle,” says Vasant.
He says there have been whispers earlier than the beginning of the season that they might be put up in a five-star lodge, however he did not fairly imagine it. “Then one day, MCA (Mumbai Cricket Association) told us that Cadbury would take care of our accommodation (for the season). They would give us clothes and food for the next two months of IPL,” remembers Vasant, seated on a cushion with a view of the Arabian Sea hugging the Marine Drive.
He remembers how totally different, and sometimes tough, it was earlier than. As the matches usually finish late — their shifts finish a lot later — they could not return residence. So they might spend the night time in a small room beneath the Vittal Divecha Stand on the stadium, the place mosquitoes made sleep tough. “Machhar kaat ke deemag kharab kar deta hai (mosquitoes would drive us mad). After the match, we could not go anywhere as train services were shut. So we would sleep in our office at the ground itself. If there is no game, we reach the stadium by 9 am and leave by 6 pm. But on match days, we come in early, and the MCA pays double if we work late,” says Vasant, clad in khaki shorts and a crisp white shirt.
In his new room, although, he has a special set of considerations. Locating the change for the lamps was tough, he says. So a lot in order that he would not change on the lamps in any respect. He will get good sleep, however the mattress is a little bit too delicate, he says.
“Walking to the dressing room is different now. We have our own bus which drops us. We don’t have words… the only thing we can say is thank you,” says fellow groundsman Nitin Mohite.
Often, that’s all they get from the gamers too. A “thank you”. But that is all they need.
Vasant remembers how former cricketer Mohammed Kaif walked in and hugged him two years in the past. “Under-19 se yehi hum logon ke seva karte tha (he has been helping us since the U-19 days),” Kaif informed his fellow commentators, he says. Vasant was overjoyed.
However, the brand new technology would not share the identical heat and appears busy in their very own world, says Vasant, who has been a dressing-room attendant throughout match-days because the ’90s, serving gamers and assist employees, offering towels, soaps and ice.
He says he has been lucky to have watched some legendary gamers from shut quarters. From Sunil Gavaskar to Prithvi Shaw, his service cuts throughout generations. He has seen the rise of Sachin Tendulkar in addition to the rise and fall of Vinod Kambli.
Needless so as to add, he has a particular fondness for Mumbai gamers. “They have been the most effective for me. They come and ask about my haal-chaal (effectively being). Kambli, Tendulkar, Ajit Agarkar — they used to verify I by no means felt uncomfortable contained in the dressing room. I’ve seen how passionate Amol Muzumdar was about his recreation. He would get upset essentially the most each time he received out,” he says.
But when he sees that somebody is disillusioned, Vasant quietly strikes to a different room. “Players need space, I have seen players getting angry and getting happy. I have seen how Tendulkar walked back crying. When he went and touched the pitch at the end of his retirement game, I couldn’t control myself. For the next two days, my heart was full,” he remembers.
This IPL season, his coronary heart is full as soon as once more.
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With inputs from TheIndianEXPRESS
