mid-day's 42nd anniversary: Streetside stickwork!

Members of The Hockey Run group, Sanah Patel (black), Richard Alphons (red), Amit Kasodekar (yellow), Prabhjyot Sethi, Ganesh Pillai, Amol Sathe (near white car) and Navjot Sethi (extreme right) during their street hockey session in Pune. Pic/Anand Chaini

The Hockey Run
Prabhjyot Sethi, 55, Navjot Sethi, 51, Amit Kasodekar, 46, Richard Alphons, 52, Sanah Patel, 30,Amol Sathe, 48, Ganesh Pillai, 49
Undeterred by the fact that they had no turf to get their regular dose of sporting adventure, this enthusiastic bunch took to the streets of Pune and had a ball

It IS rightly said that necessity is the mother of invention. The Hockey Run is one such invention by a group of friends who refused to be bogged down by the Coronavirus-caused lockdown.

The brainchild of Pune-based advertising professionals and brothers, Prabhjyot, 55, and Navjot Sethi, 51, The Hockey Run is a simple run-and-pass routine of hockey, but played across a street rather than a maidan or ground.

It so happened that the Sethi brothers and five of their friends - Amit Kasodekar, 46, Richard Alphons, 52, Sanah Patel, 30, Amol Sathe, 48, and Ganesh Pillai, 49 - who regularly enjoyed a game of hockey at the Pune racecourse ground, were suddenly left with nowhere to play when public places were shut last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic. So, with the gates of their playground shut, they simply started passing the ball around to each other on the street as they headed back to their nearby homes. They began dribbling each other for fun and started enjoying it, "and that's how The Hockey Run was born," Prabhjyot tells mid-day recently.

The group soon began meeting up regularly to practise their special run. "We always played hockey, but as far as The Hockey Run is concerned, it was not a planned thing. It began out of serendipity but now we enjoy it. The Hockey Run belongs to the seven of us. It's challenging because while we dribble one other, we also have to watch out for vehicular traffic, the general people and morning walkers. But since all of us played hockey at some level or the other as youngsters, we have a fair bit of control, so we haven't hurt anyone. The running bit makes it interesting. It's actually a jog but a good fitness activity nevertheless. And of course, we ensure we maintain social distancing throughout the hour-long routine," adds Prabhjyot.

Navjot reveals that their unique drill tends to attract some raised eyebrows as playing hockey on the road like this is a rarity. "When people saw us initially, many would stare at us, but thankfully, most people have been accommodating and we have had little or no complaints. We just get the odd glare now and then to which we respond with a smile," says Navjot.

Prabhjyot says The Hockey Run has also helped the group lose weight. "As days progressed, we incorporated little scoops and flicks into our run. Each one of us has lost around seven to eight kilos due to The Hockey Run," he says.

The Hockey Run has recently switched ‘turf,' from concrete streets to muddy paths lining the green hillocks near NIBM Road in Pune.

"We all stay within five kilometres of NIBM Road which has some up-and-down hilly tracks. There is a place called Taljai Hills, a forest reserve, where we now do The Hockey Run. The hilly terrain increases the intensity of the challenge," adds Navjot.

Interestingly, the friendly exercise is poised to become a social initiative, it seems. "Many people enjoy watching our routine and that has inspired us to take things to a larger scale. We want to pay tribute to the Indian men's and women's hockey teams that will be competing at the Tokyo Olympics. We are thinking of initiating a Run for India or Run for Indian Hockey campaign. We don't want to label this as a movement but want people to come out of their homes and find a small street or lane or even on their terrace and shoot a video and dedicate it to this campaign. We believe that if we oldies can inspire even one person to promote or support hockey or rethink his or her fitness goals, our job is done," says Prabhjyot.

The men behind The Hockey Run recently caught the attention of ad professional Tanmay Biyani, 24, who was driving through the lanes of Pune. Biyani decided to make a short clip on the group and the snippet has been very well received on social media. "I was born and brought up in Pune but currently work in Bangalore. During one of my visits to Pune recently to meet my parents, one morning when I was driving, I saw these guys passing the ball from one corner of the road to another. I found it fascinating. I have travelled to many places in India but never have I seen something like this. I have seen people play gully cricket or rink football on the roads but I've never seen anyone play hockey on the street. I decided to shoot them. I wrote a little story accompanying the clip which explains what the run means to these guys and how it all started. I shot the video in June and it has been a hit online. The Hockey Run is a breakthrough idea that emerged from adversity. I felt it had to be recorded for posterity," Biyani concluded.

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