I can understand
people not being in love with or in awe of Sachin. I get it even if you don't
like him much. I completely understand if you have better things to do. I just
don't get Sachin haters. What does that even mean? And what's to hate anyway?
By saying you are a ‘Sachin-hater’, you are actually putting him on a pedestal
much higher than he already enjoys. May be he is not the greatest. May be he is
not even great. May be he is no hero; he is after all just a sportsperson and
never claims to be anything more. Some love him merely for the entertainment he
has provided over the years. Some because they think he is one of those few who
touches hearts across borders, religions, castes and classes. But to look with
scorn and a sense of superiority at those who shed a tear during his retirement
or those who say they love him is a bit patronizing, don’t you think?
And then there
are those who say that people shedding tears at Sachin's retirement are
otherwise callous people who don't give a damn when people lose lives at the
border or during terror attacks or other catastrophes. Why compare the two
situations at all? Is there really a comparison?? I mean if anything, you are
the ones who are trivializing the lives lost. In the moment, people cry over the
smallest things - movies, TV shows and similarly sports.
Yes some of us
shed tears when people win or lose sports, when people retire, when we watch
movies but also when we see a helpless person on the street, terrible mishaps
take place and people lose lives or when great social leaders die. And believe
it or not, we also cry when loved ones are in trouble – in fact I can’t even
pretend to know what I might do if that were to happen; cry, act strong or
worst possible outcome, not able to cry because of being in a state of shock or
trauma. Sometimes in grave situations, we might even try and do more than just
shed tears. Provide help may be if we are in a position to. Just as we are
capable of laughing at good and bad jokes, we are capable of crying during
tragedies, victories and moments of sadness spanning a vast range and
intensity.
Coming back
specifically to Sachin, here’s just a short note about what Sachin means to me.
Since I was a little kid, I started enjoying cricket and cricket at the time,
in the 90s was all about Sachin; simply because he was the only one who played
well consistently, with passion, like a kid keen on winning and doing well each
time and with ethics. He was the guy who got India out of precarious situations
time and time again and we came to associate the Cricket of the 90s with
Sachin. It means that for the last 20 years I have watched him play and hoped
each time that India and he succeed. He has entertained me for the last
20 years. A little confession; I don’t consider myself a particularly motivated
person; someone who goes all out to achieve something they desire. And it is
precisely that quality (missing in me) that I admire about Sachin and also a
lot of other people, far greater as well as closer people. Now I feel a sense
of loss, a sense of losing a part of my childhood and realize that all those
beautiful moments are now buried way in the past. And so I shed tears. Does
that mean I will shed tears everyday from this day on? Some of us criticize him
as much as we praise him. I wanted him to retire earlier than he actually did
but then, now or later, I would still have become emotional. I am not even so sure that he should have received the 'Bharat Ratna'. I have criticized
him for not being more outspoken about dirty politics surrounding cricket. I,
in fact, admire Dravid much more for doing what few other cricketers have
done; speaking up against corruption in Cricket.
Today, I was left
dehydrated after the speech he made. I was touched by the speech. And you know
what, this is not the first time in my life that I have been moved - like I
said I have shed many a tear; some during catastrophes, calamities, sports
victories and losses, retirements, deaths, personal tragedies of course and
some during the worst of movies! So if today, after listening to Sachin’s
speech I don’t go out and declare how much I cried when someone died or profoundly moved me so many
years, months or days ago and instead mention the most recent occasion when I
did, which happens to be Sachin’s farewell speech, does that make me stupid,
emotionally weak and/or a terribly callous person? If it does, well I promise
you, there is little I can do. I just can't help it!
