If there's one story of a sportsman's life that has been tugging away at thousands of hearts for the past three-and-half decades, it is that of 61-year- old table tennis legend V. Chandrasekhar, popularly known as Chandra.
For many, the mere mention of Chandra brings a lump to their throats.
It was 1984, and the handsome and flamboyant Chandra's career at the age of 25 was travelling up like a lobbed table tennis ball: Three times national champion, semi-finalist at Commonwealth Games an, Arjuna Award winner, a gold medalist both in BA Economics and Law - a good career was in front of him.
"In 1984, I was at an important point in my life - whether to pursue law as a career or continue with table tennis while working in State Bank of India (SBI). I thought of taking a call on that after participating in the World Championships," Chandra told IANS.
"At that time, table tennis was slowly gaining popularity and attracting sponsors. Chandra was one of the best and attractive players. He was a fighter and a risk taker. Even in the crucial stages of a game Chandra would take risks that would unsettle the opponents and he would bag the match," former national champion Kamlesh Mehta told IANS.
But fate had something else in store for Chandra. Like the lobbed ball getting smashed, his life was smashed to smithereens on the operation table at Apollo Hospital here on September 14, 1984.
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Chandra, who went into Apollo Hospital for a minor knee operation, lost his speech, vision and mobility - and came out like a vegetable.
"I cried seeing him in the hospital with different tubes jutting out from his body. It was not the Chandra we all knew from our childhood," S. Mahalakshmi, his cousin told IANS.
"Chandra who used to mimic movie actors like Thengai Srinivasan and enthrall us in the family, lost his speech. He was an optimistic person and there would always be a smile on his face. He was handsome and many of my friends had a crush on him. Words cannot express how we all felt then," she added.
According to Mahalakshmi, Chandra was like a tiger on the playing court.
"In one tournament, I heard the crowd chanting only 'Chandra, Chandra' throughout the game," Mahalakshmi said.
Chandra who grew up at his grandfather R.M.Seshadri's home, had imbibed many of his qualities, like the fighting spirit.
"After getting discharged from Apollo Hospital and while at my grandfather's home, I got a call from my lawyer friend, my classmate C. Aryama Sundaram, saying I should fight Apollo Hospital. He was not able to understand what I was speaking on the phone and came home," Chandra mused.
According to Chandra, there was a difference of opinion between Aryama Sundaram and his grandfather on how the case should be fought.
"My grandfather said Apollo Hospital should be faulted for 'lack of proper care', whereas Aryama Sundaram argued it should be on the grounds of 'medical negligence'. As it was my friend who came forward on his own with the idea of fighting a case, I agreed with him," Chandra said.
According to Chandra, many tried to dissuade him and his family members from filing a case against Apollo Hospitals.
"While I was told that no doctor would give an opinion against Apollo Hospitals, many doctors came and gave their views in my favour in the court," Chandra said.
Finally, the court awarded a sum of about Rs 16 lakh and the case became a landmark among medico-legal cases.
While the court case was on, treatment and rehabilitation process started with Chandra attending yoga classes.
"Neuro-specialists like Biswakumar and the late Ramamurthy treated me here. I and went to the US and Canada for further treatment. As I had gone overseas two years after the Apollo Hospital episode, doctors there said they were not able to do anything about the fully damaged cells but were able to treat the partially damaged cells in the brain," Chandra said.
Chandra decided to focus on training upcoming players and began coaching classes, first at the YMCA and then at the D.G. Vaishnav College and the SBOA School. Finally, he set up his own SDAT Medimix Chandra TT Coaching Centre.
With Chandra becoming 70-80 per cent normal, he decided to get married. Had it been a normal and healthy Chandra, girls would have fallen head-over-heels to be his wife. But this was a different and a difficult Chandra.
But fate, which had turned kind to him now, pointed him the brave Mala, his SBI colleague.
"I had read about Chandrasekhar and the botched-up surgery while in college. Later I had joined SBI and forgotten all about the case," Mala told IANS.
After seeing a failed marriage of a close relative, Mala decided to stay single.
"I was wonderstruck when a colleague told me that Chandra was alive and working in SBI. I wanted a meeting just to see the person who fought against all odds and was running a table tennis academy. Later I decided to marry him," Mala said.
"But why Chandra, was the logical question from my parents. His parents were also apprehensive".
She asked her parents to match their horoscopes and if they matched, then she would marry him. The two horoscopes matched and the wedding happened.
"I will not say I made a sacrifice marrying Chandra. I was clear about what it meant in marrying him. Looking back, I have no regrets. We are happy. I have my freedom and space," she said.
She did agree that married life was tough as Chandra was not able to help her out with household work and she had to manage the home, take care of him and also attend office.
"I understood that the academy was very important for Chandrasekhar's life and health. I did not complain about him going to his academy daily," she said.
Soon, they got a son, C. Sanjay, now a second year engineering student.
Strangely, Chandra a celebrated player and running an academy was not able to coach his own son Sanjay, who had a natural flair for the game.
"Sanjay had the natural flair for table tennis. For sometime Sanjay attended his father's coaching centre where he was treated like any other trainee. But owing to logistical problems Sanjay was not able to continue there," Mala said.
According to Mala, initially Sanjay used to say that he would play table tennis and also help his father in running the academy. Good at studies, Sanjay subsequently started focusing on this and lost interest in table tennis.
"Running the academy is his passion despite the financial implications it involves. I am a spiritual person. I am a strong believer in Karma and perhaps it was his Karma in his earlier birth that took him to the top, dropped him down and picked him up again in this birth," Mala said.
The champion-turned-coach has coached several table tennis champions like G. Sathiyan, S. Raman, M.S. Mythili, Bhuvaneshwari, Chetan Baboor and others.
The SDAT Medimix Chandra TT academy now has about 70 students with some upcoming bright stars like K. Umesh, G. Chittresh.
"The trainees follow my aggressive style of play, and go for attack on the third shot," Chandra said.
"Funds are always short and any sponsor is always welcome," the fighter, who is back from the brink, concludes.
(Venkatachari Jagannathan can be reached at v.jagannathan@ians.in)
--IANS
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