Frazer Town's hockey connection

Some of the best hockey players have come out of Karnataka, but Frazer Town’s contribution to state hockey deserves a special mention. Scores of youngsters took to the game inspired by India’s golden run in the last century (India bagged six consecutive Olympic golds from 1928 to 1956 and added two more since).

In the old days, the charming East Ground, fringed by a beautiful park and the small, quaint Bengaluru East Railway Station, was one of the few hockey maidans. Frazer Town was home of the famous Britto sisters: Elvera, Priscilla, Rita and Mae.

Synonymous with women’s hockey, they donned the Karnataka colours with distinction in the 1960s when the state won a string of titles. Elvera went on to captain the Indian women’s hockey team and even excelled as a national selector.

Jacqueline Colaco was another gifted woman player from the area to wear the India cap. The girls sometimes played alongside boys to steel themselves.

Like the ladies, Muniswamy Rajgopal, who lived on Standage Road, was also the pride of Frazer Town! He put the erstwhile Mysore state on the map by becoming the first player from the state to win an Olympic gold medal (1952 Helsinki Games). He excelled as a left-winger and earned the moniker ‘The Artful Dodger’. His living room was chock-a-block with sports mementoes and photographs.

Frazer Town had other stars -- Jani Mohideen (standby for the 1968 Mexico Olympics, who earlier in 1967 toured Ceylon with the Indian team) and R Gunaseelan (International). In addition, Karnataka seniors like S Nazeem Pasha, R Bhaskar, M D Umapathi, Jeevan Kalappa, Nagubalan, Rajasekhar, Satyakumar, Deenadayal, Khalid Modi, Jayaraj, Padmanabhan, Rajeshwaran, V Veeramuthu and Parushuram left their stamp on the game too. Parushuram also excelled as a coach for East Bengal.

Besides, many State Juniors from also left a mark on the state hockey; these juniors were talented enough to play for the senior side. But dirty politics, the bane of sports in India, proved to be a stumbling block in advancing many promising careers!

Most of the old-timers turned up for Bangalore Muslims in the local league under the tutelage of Mr Ameen, a stern taskmaster. Ameen ran a cycle hire shop on Kenchappa Road and seldom missed his daily dose of hockey, mirroring his undying passion for the game.

Much later, Devaraj, former Karnataka state hockey selector and executive member of the Karnataka State Hockey Association (KSHA), helped shape many careers. Crippled at an early age, Deva, as his wards fondly called him, ran his club, Royals, from his nondescript shop, Bapuji Paper Mart on St John’s Church Road.

In the old days, unable to buy shoes, locals played bare-foot sans protection. Boot-clad players looked entirely out of sync. The legend has it that the 1948 Indian Olympic hockey team played without shoesfor lack of funds! Nevertheless, Frazer Town has etched its name in Karnataka’s rich hockeyhistory and continues to roll out budding talents.