One wouldn't exactly have picked kabaddi as a sport that would inspire popular leagues and world championships. But, with the successful debut of the Pro Kabaddi League (PKL), and the undeniable appeal of a sport that every Indian can associate with, the reasons for kabaddi's popularity in the Indian cultural setting have become (retrospectively) self-evident.
First and foremost, and one cannot emphasise this enough, kabaddi is the sole indigenous sport that we as Indians can lay claim to as our very own. It is practiced and developed and played across India - and if anything, it has a wider rural participation and viewership base than it does an urban one. Developed and cultivated by Indians as opposed to introduced and/or superimposed, its dissemination has been wide, and what helps the most is that Indians excel at it. For better or for worse, all of us have grown up with a basic knowledge of the rules, and have played it with differing degrees of enthusiasm, skill - and roughhousing. So, by re-introducing Indian society to a sport that elicits nostalgia and at the same time provides a modified and interesting viewing package, the promoters of the game appear to have found a successful formula.
Promoting kabaddi has many ancillary benefits besides patriotism. It cuts across socio-economic barriers. All sports need financing to be viable career options; corporate support is required. In this case, given kabaddi's inclusive nature, this support would have an external social benefit. From a company's perspective, it is low risk and low investment, as compared to sports which have an international presence and already established stars. In the absence of pre-packaged and pre-existing celebrity athletes, kabaddi's potential is high.
From government authorities' perspective, kabaddi needs to be promoted - because, unlike cricket and hockey, it is a sport that exists because of Indians. So from that perspective, kabaddi is a win-win for all. And, when packaged as well as the PKL is, with the right combination of glitz and high-quality production, the concept is earmarked for success.
A unique formula for Indian 'leagues' has been the overarching presence of celebrities, and the PKL is no different. But, the PKL has a genuinely unique product: One that needs little introduction, relatively low investment, modified rules that make the competition viewer-friendly, and a broadcast partner in STAR India that promoted the event with considerable enthusiasm.
When socio-cultural pride meets a viable financial proposition, there is usually a pot of gold at the end of the investment tunnel. But, that doesn't necessarily mean that this breakthrough doesn't risk ending up a fad or a one-trick pony. For kabaddi and the PKL to genuinely become a cultural phenomenon, quite a few things need to happen. First, kabaddi needs to become more popular in other countries, and the standards in those countries also need to improve further, especially those in South and Southeast Asia. A world championship title only has meaning if there are more than a handful of countries participating in the event. Another challenge that kabaddi will face is the fact that, in urban areas, it will likely remain merely a recreational school-ground activity. Because of the high impact nature of the sport and as of now low international visibility, it has limited potential for India's urban youth. So in effect it becomes more of a spectator sport as opposed to a participation-potential sport, limiting the growth of its popularity, and limiting the talent pool.
The fact is that leagues in India are faddish. Too much of a good thing can hit saturation point rather quickly, and that will be just one of the challenges that kabaddi and the PKL face.
A lot will depend on what happens from here. If the upcoming world championships are successful, and if the participation figures across India and eventually internationally increase proportionately over the next few years, kabaddi will likely become a once-unexpected cultural phenomenon over the next several years. If not, then it could either fade into fad status, or at most moderately successful with limited impact overall. Regardless, the initiative as it is today, is a good one.
Let's hope that in the future kabaddi will be known more for its crossover cultural appeal, and less for campy catchphrases like 'thigh-five'.
The author leads the sports initiative at J Sagar Associates.
These views are his own
These views are his own
Disclaimer: These are personal views of the writer. They do not necessarily reflect the opinion of www.business-standard.com or the Business Standard newspaper
