Yeh 'India' Ka Cricket Hai !

Indians hardly love any other thing with such fascination, desperation and aggrssion than Cricket. Whether we love cricket stars or the sport itself has remained the topic of debate always. For me, the thing to mention is that these cricketing stars reflect the changing mode of our society, change in attitudes of our people and in general changing India.
Indian Cricket got real world recognition only after Sunil Gavaskar. Before him, our Cricket was under big impression of Britishers as our country was in that period. Mind you, Gavaskar came in 1971 and Amitabh Bacchan did his entry in same '70s. Indians had started to come out of any sort of obligation and binding of others in that period and hence his 'Angry Young Man' image was so much accepted. During same years, Gavaskar came on the circuit and since then he took Indian cricket to a newer height earning respect from cricketing world. Kapil Dev was also the product of this decade. The first Pokharan was also done in same decade. Is it a coincidence?
Cut to 90's. India was striving to sustain and earning greater credibility in the world. Some aggression based on old basics was coming both in cricket and in society before 90's. After the globalisation, scenario change. This is the decade, when the ever great batting trio of India, Sachin, Saurav and Dravid came and rocked the world. It was the next step, when aggression was increased, confidence was on much higher levels. Throwing all shackles, the regenerated India, in Cricket, was ready to set a big challenge in front of other cricketing countries. Was not this the same story for India as a country in world affairs? Sachin, Saurav and Rahul were the icons of that generation who had seen old values and want to go ahead without going away from those values. Politeness, patience, down to earth attitude of the trio was the peculiar characteristic of Indian society then. How can I forget Anil Kumble in this list? In 1997,Kumble took 10 wickets. 1998 was the most successful year of Sachin and he was acclaimed as best betsman by the world after this. Second Pokharan was also done in 1998. Was it a coincidence?
Cut to 2005, India was emerging as a power in world and in Cricket also. There comes the entire new generation. Yuvraj, Dhoni, Harbhajan,Gambhir. More aggression, more confidence, totally different attitudes, values, beliefs and styles. Sometimes, loosing ground due to over confidence and over aggression. Isn't it a story of Indian youths after 2005. Mind you fiends, college going students have changed tremendously after 2005. Same is the Cricket. They want to do new things, hardly ready to listen others and believe much in themselves. IPL came after this? Breed of young politicians in India also came after this. Is this too a coincidence?
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Refreshed and Silent!

Jungles fascinate me and for me those are like schools. Every visit to forest carve out some different lesson hidden in the treasure of the nature and makes me wealthier than last visit. The recent visit to Tadoba gave me similar experience which can only be termed as 'spiritual' and i became literally 'speechless'.
Tadoba tiger project is in Chandrapur district. Taru Ba is the god for Madiya and Gondi tribals in this area and hence the jungle is known Tadoba. Gond king use to organise Pooja and fare in this jungle earlier. For Tadoba, we started at 6 a.m. in an open gypsy and with a young enthusiastic guide. As like our family, people go to Tadoba, with the one and only desire, that is to see the Tiger. It is not totally wrong with that, but the danger is that we may miss to spot on the other beauty of the forest. There is one board at the entrance of Tadoba forest. It says, no one can assure you that tiger will be spotted, but the real fun lies in this unpredictability. Apart from Tiger, there are Cheetal, Chuasingha, barking deer, wild dogs, bison, crocodile, beer, wild cats, any number of beautiful birds and of course amazing forest. There is tree called 'Karai', it turns white in summer, green in winter and red in rainy season. When it turns white, with its peculiar branches, it looks like a ghost and hence also called as 'ghost tree'.
Tadoba as like many other forests really have many fantastic stories about forest and animal. along with us, there was a foreigner researcher on the tour and it was his ninth round to forest. Inspite of that he had not seen the tiger and was determined to do the 'task'. Now, when I am writing this, I am sure he will be on the Safari doing same mary-go-round activity. As our guide told, once he was as usual surfing through forests along with his troup of tourists which also had one professional photographer. On the way, they found four wild dogs, trying to hunt a mother deer and her two baby deers. For any nature photographer the seen was rare and an exciting opportunity to capture. Two wild dogs, seperated mother from her babies and two others were killing those babies. When dogs were trying to leave the mother, she was attacking them and babies were running away. The fight continued for 15 to 20 minutes and at last wild dogs got the success. These dogs eat the prey when it is alive. Dogs were eating small deers when they were alive and their mother was just seeing it helplessely. A minute later, teers fell on the earth, from the eyes of mother deer and also of the tourists who were watching that struggle for life. The photographer, just shut down his camera, even though it might be a supreme snap for him and sat down in shocked, speechless condition, the scene was such a horrible. Neither deer nor wild dogs were wrong. There are many things in life which might be wrong from our eyes, but can be the reason of sustaining for others. As deers were important for dogs for their living. Many times our fate, lies in the control of others. Ah!
We also saw the dead beer killed by the tiger just a couple of days back, a Chuasingha falling fruits with its awsome horns, the idle looking crocodile on the bank of the lake, birds flying over water in style, the blue- green parrot and the beautiful lake in forest. The beauty of Tadoba or of any jungle lies in, just seeing what comes ahead of you. What I like personally, is the silence in the jungle, which is a thing to experience personally. The refrshing experience!
So, it was my another tour which ended on positive note and an invitation from the guide to come again in Tadoba in summer, just to see the king of Jungle, The Tiger. Who knows I may go again there, as the first eye contact with that beauty, has already created eagerness and excitement in me.
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