Japan and Hong Kong cannot hold a candle to India when it comes to cricketing competence but these nations blow their Asian counterpart out of the water once Global Health Index is a yardstick. India scored 61.3 in 2024, ranking 112th in the survey of the fittest countries in the world. One out of every four people is obese, with urbanites in the age group of 30-50 the worst affected. 21 crore, almost one sixth of the population, have high levels of blood cholesterol which causes cardiovascular diseases, the leading cause of death and disability in India. The average age of 70 puts them at the 125th position on the planet if life expectancy is considered, and their happiness quotient isn’t much to write home about either – 4.3 out of 10 to end up at the 118th spot among 147 contenders. The silver lining amid the gloom and doom is the proliferation of recreational sports centres across India, promising to pitchfork its citizenry from their plain insouciance towards well-being.
‘’I realized early that India is one of those very few countries that stops playing after we turn adults. Which is strange!’’ exclaims Shree Harsha, the co-founder of Rush, a Bangalore-based company established in 2015 that is now among India’s premier recreational sports chains with 8 lakh square feet of indoor turf for cricket, football and pickleball. ‘’We were just sports fans and we said, let’s build something for amateur players that can give them a sense of how a professional cricketer could feel.
‘’We organized cricket leagues for office-goers and stylized them. We got sports photographers and videographers to cover. We had great production in terms of drones, music, smoke machines, and cheerleading stages. Each team got a highlights montage, even before Instagram reels existed.
‘’Since we started clean slates, we had no reference point of how amateur tournaments take place in India,’’ recollects Harsha, who drew inspiration from the IPL pomp and show for his brainchild that set the wheels in motion for the popular phenomenon that recreational sport has turned out to be. ‘’In the West, for every 100 people who watch a game, 30 come out and play. The Asian figure is 15. The Indian number, when Rush began a decade ago, was 1,’’ he informs. ‘’And why were we not playing? I think there were no places to play.’’
More than half of the world’s population resides in cities, and the urban population is projected to rise to two-thirds by 2050. The large-scale concentration of human settlement in the cities entails a necessary evil – conversion of green spaces into built environments. As of 2020, only about 13% of urban areas in India were equipped with parks and green spaces.
Entrepreneurs like Harsha plugged this supply-and-demand gap, like Uber did for taxi hailers. ‘’In 2018, we set up our first venue in Bangalore, a 7000 square feet multi-sport destination, originally constructed for football. But in a week’s time, the consumption was mostly box cricket. Even today, 70% of our bookings on football turf come from cricket,’’ he states. ‘Not at all surprising.’’ After all, India’s love affair with the game is the stuff of legend. In vogue in metropolitans, the concept of recreational sport has penetrated downwards at full tilt, with arenas mushrooming in incipient cities, suburbs and even towns. Middle-aged Indians are therefore reintegrating themselves with their favourite sport rather than spending the weekend partying or binge-watching Netflix, triggering an unprecedented health revolution in a sedentary society that treats fitness as an afterthought, by and large.
‘’Abdominal obesity, dyslipidemia, and metabolic disorders are escalating because we’re constantly on a couch,’’ remarks sports nutritionist Sneha Shukla. ‘’People don’t understand the basic metabolic rate, they don’t understand that they are not using their muscle function, their dormant muscle groups anymore. It’s the basic need for our survival. I think fitness has become more about the number on the weighing scale rather than complete vitality and holistic improvement,’’ she laments, adding how the cesspool of misinformation that is social media propagates the idea of instant gratification, sucking Indians into the rabbit hole of magic pills, fad diets, anabolic steroids, and cosmetic treatments at the expense of their central nervous system, hormones and gut microbiome.
Sports psychiatrist Chinmay Patkar concurs. ‘’For example, the ketogenic diet was such a big deal. All the celebrities were doing it but through research over the last five years people have grasped that it is not healthy for your body. There are so many Instagram accounts that are promoting a Paleo diet which is primarily protein-rich, exclusively through lean meat, but Paleo also has a negative impact on your kidney. So before research people get an opinion but opinion is not a fact and that’s where the problem begins. 10 people say the same thing online and you start assuming that this is the right thing. Herd mentality can be toxic because you might get into something that’s detrimental for your health. Everyone’s body is unique, we all have a different genetic makeup. You have to take a structured approach to life,’’ urges Chinmay, cautioning against blind trust on social media and AI-driven platforms like ChatGPT, instead advising seeking out a certified doctor to discuss dietary concerns.
Sneha echoes the sentiments, shedding light on the reverse psychology witnessed in her field of work where patients come up to a qualified professional and hurl at them random insights derived from Google rather than letting the expert do their job. ‘’A client straight up wanted me to give him an intermittent fasting regime. He had a severe gut health issue and was suffering from Irritable Bowel Syndrome for decades now. I didn’t find it right to give him an intermittent fasting plan or any sort of rapid diets that he was asking for.’’ she observes, shaking her head at the audacity.
Gastrointestinal Reflux Disease, generally known as acidity, is an Indian pet peeve. ‘’We are highly dependent upon the flavours because of eating junk. Mentally, people are exhausted to be able to invest time in preparing nutritious, wholesome meals. You have instant food delivery apps at your fingertips. All these rubbish spices create so much inflammation in the stomach and what makes matters worse is that you are dehydrated, caffeinated, you are skipping meals; of course you are going to aggravate the issue. Also you are likely to overeat because you have starved yourself, already high in acidic nature. To get that instant energy you will either give in to the sugar rush or crave salty french fries, chips and burgers.’’
Even for those paying attention to the contents on their plate, Sneha recommends increasing the nutritional requirement in their body to actually pick the nutrients up. ‘’Your gut needs mobility to digest food and absorb the nutrients. You need to create that demand in your body,’’ she pinpoints, agreeing to the assessment that incorporating sport even twice into the weekly schedule can not only alleviate heartburn but also relax you mentally because as per nutritional psychiatry 95% of serotonin, the happy hormone, is produced in the gastrointestinal tract. ‘’It’s the vagus nerve that connects your mind and gut entirely. There’s no interference there. If you’re not taking care of your gut health, you cannot improvise your mental health condition either,’’ underlines Sneha, a firm advocate of the theory that physically active individuals exhibit a greater awareness of their nutritional needs and a stronger motivation to make healthier food choices, which lends heft to the hypothesis that recreational sport can indeed usher a positive wellness loop.
‘’So many intricate processes are going on in your body at each moment,’’ Chinmay points out. ‘’Neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine help in improving your mood. BDNF, brain derived neurotrophic factor, boosts synaptic connectivity, sharpening your memory, focus, thought process, and alertness. Norepinephrine reduces your stress reaction and endorphins kill pain so if you are in a stressful work environment or an exam, exercising on a regular basis will make a world of difference. The scientific duration is 150 minutes in a week. You will feel calmer and your concentration levels will shoot up. Hence you will get things done efficiently. Sporting activity makes for a good release rather than always going out and eating or grabbing a drink with your friends which is not healthy in the long run.’’ India is anyway the world’s largest whisky consumer and their household spending on alcoholic beverages and tobacco leapt 15.7% in Financial Year 24 – the highest since FY12 – so recreational sport can be a game-changer for jaded beings drinking their sorrows away at their liver’s peril.
Apart from cognitive enhancement, the benefits of recreational sport permeate to sexual health. ‘’I tell women to engage more in sports,’’ Sneha notifies. ‘’Of different types, because I believe in cycle syncing. I prescribe depending on their ovulation or luteal phase. Physical movement supports hormonal balance and improves blood flow to reproductive organs.’’
Indian women have 5–15% lower bone mineral density than non-Asian women, leading to the higher prevalence of osteoporosis and osteopenia. ‘’That’s because you are menstruating for most of your life,’’ Sneha reasons. ‘’PCOS (Polycystic Ovary Syndrome) is one of the primary issues nowadays. It’s essentially insulin sensitivity, which comes from a place of low physical activity and eating junk food.’’
In 2023-24 the female work participation rate in India nearly doubled as compared to 2017-18. While initially conglomerates staged recreational sports only to tick off the CSR (corporate-social responsibility) checkbox, the tangible evidence produced in the form of better team bonding, productivity rates, problem-solving prowess and employee retention has maximized their belief in its efficacy. ‘’We work with Applied Materials, one of the largest semiconductor companies in the world. They built a property with us called Applied Premier League where about 2,000 employees participate annually. It’s one month long, carried out on weekdays,” Harsha enlightens. ”For AbbVie, a pharma company, we hosted box cricket in four cities. From Delhi to Varanasi to Bangalore to Calcutta.
‘’Post COVID-19, the definition of fitness has changed. Today, corporates are drawing out a comprehensive health and wellness package for their employees, from giving complimentary gym memberships to conducting sports activities throughout the year. Sport is a great way to learn how to handle losses. You prepare, come back and win. That’s character development. Because it’s so dynamic, your team building aspect also takes a big spike. Clients are giving us excellent feedback saying, the last time their employees really enjoyed it. So, it’s validation that sport is promoting health and wellness in the white-collar segment, and thus the aspirations are increasing. They want more experiences – think presentation ceremony, pro photographers, lodging, welcome troupe – and are willing to spend up to 12 lakhs for a 40-member event.’’ explains Harsha, who has set foot in Ahmedabad, Hyderabad and Chennai and plans to expand Rush to cities at the mesial rungs of the evolutionary ladder, having tested the waters in Mysore, Patna, and Silvassa.
Indra Agrawal, a 30-year-old grocery store owner who recently became a parent, visits the box cricket avenue erected last year near his hometown Barwaha every week without fail. ‘’Earlier we went to the college ground, but there were quite a few hiccups. We couldn’t play in the evening because it got dark by the time we wrapped up the day’s tasks. Most of us were reluctant to wake up early. So we weren’t even able to play once a week, now we do, twice sometimes as the box cricket timings are conducive. Previously we’d struggle to get 5-6 votes on the WhatsApp poll but at present we have to turn people away as 15-16 guys sign up for a six-a-team contest!
‘’On the ground we could play only two matches in two hours, in box cricket we manage three 8-over games in the same timeframe and everyone gets an equal chance to be involved, be it batting, bowling or fielding as the netted enclosure optimizes the sport. Also, barren grounds are injury prone. On indoor turf the probability of harm is much lesser. The cleanliness is amazing. No dust, no stones, no shredded glass from emptied wine bottles, and no garbage in sight. So relatively speaking it is a much safer, pleasant experience.’’
Indra’s grocery store, situated by the main square of the village, is a purchasing hotspot for locals and hence profit is the least of his worries, but prolonged seating to make that moolah generated complaints of knee and back pain. ‘’My lifestyle was sedentary but ever since I have regularized box cricket my aches have reduced and my body moves freely. I even started working out after becoming habitual to movement. I’ve lost 3-4 kilos in the last six months,’’ he gushes.
In a backward region like Barwaha attitudes remain primitive and the fact that hooligans occupy the solitary ground means women could not step outdoors to play, prioritizing their safety over sporting inclination. ‘’Ever since the turf has been set up, we are seeing them participate. Apart from cricket, they play kho-kho and football,’’ Indra updates. ‘’It’s a fairly conservative atmosphere they live in over here so it’s a heartening development.’’
Kalki Koechlin, who plays the character of Simran Kohli in the movie Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, says, in a moment of poignance, ‘It’s the digital age, we feel like we’re hyper-connected but perhaps we’ve never been as lonelier’. India faces an alarming loneliness epidemic despite the perception of a collectivist culture, with young and older adulthood populations bearing the brunt. Barwaha has measly entertainment options, public spaces, cafes, and dedicated hangout spots, so the addition of sport to life has prompted an internal transformation for Indra. ‘’The two hours that we play on the turf is the happiest time of my week. Often I have to deal with grumpy customers, giving way to arguments and frustration, so I get to unwind and relax there.’’
‘’Mental health in India is still a taboo, especially for men. Since childhood girls speak freely to their parents and friends, but boys keep to themselves or even if they do, there is a certain barrier in that equation,’’ reckons Indra, an engineering graduate whose batchmates have all moved out of town. ‘’Now I am able to voice my problems to a friend because the turf has given me that opportunity to have confidants in the first place. Our friendships have strengthened by playing together frequently. A lot of times men are in a terrible headspace but they are not able to talk openly about it. Middle-aged men have no escape from their challenging lives, stereotypically they have to ‘man up’ and fulfill their obligations. So box cricket becomes an outlet for us to let go of our emotions in a healthy manner. Man halka ho jaata hai (the burden is unloaded off my chest), opines Indra, no longer troubled by disturbed sleep owing to an uncluttered mind and the sweet exhaustion of his cricketing dalliances.
‘’It opens up conversations back home. I tell my loved ones about my outing so it breaks down those walls too that I mentioned about.’’ Indra adds. There’s room for more personal conversations rather than the mundane politics or current affairs chitchat that men stick to. My relationship with my parents grows warmer.’’
Gym owners have a bash in January when New Year resolutions are still new, but for the majority in India keeping up a workout routine proves to be an exercise in futility, not least because of listening to mixed opinions and doing too much too soon. ‘’There is an extreme lack of awareness about gym training in rural areas. Broscience is rampant. Whey protein is considered a drug that plants kidney stones. Fans are turned off while working out. Some resort to dangerous shortcuts like muscle-building injections or worse, sustain life-threatening injuries because they have no one to guide them about posture, form and progressive overload.’’ notes Indra, suffixing that for people wanting to get in shape recreational sport is a viable alternative given its freestyle, non-demanding nature.
‘’Box cricket has no limitations – it is not restricted by age, gender, tonnes of equipment or ability. I would like to maintain this habit till the age of 70-80. As long as I’m alive, I will try and play,’’ affirms Indra, whose trackpants and running shoes were catching dust in the wardrobe an year ago. His newfangled devotion towards recreational sport is a microcosm of the Indian society, a sleeping giant that is now waking up to the seriousness of its health predicament by indulging in a not-so-serious game of cricket.
References:
https://www.indiatoday.in/diu/story/obesity-india-one-in-every-four-has-weight-problem-1953621-2022-05-24
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5526216/
https://scholarlycommons.henryford.com/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1107&context=endocrinology_articles
https://www.ijfmr.com/papers/2024/5/29663.pdf
https://ijip.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/18.01.048.20200802.pdf
https://www.moneycontrol.com/news/business/economy/households-spending-on-alcohol-and-healthcare-hit-a-new-high-in-fy24-13034908.html
