Passion for football draws Vyasarpadi kids to school

Encouraged by the reverberations of the tournament, and how regular football practice invigorated a large number of underprivileged students in the area, CRY went on to host five tournaments, including the latest one­ that saw 17 teams, including two girls’ teams on Saturday.

Entering their twenties as a lawyer, chartered accountant and civil service aspirant are Shakthi, Yeshwant and Marthal respectively, residing in Vyasarpadi, an area written off by the rest of the city for its notoriety. Besides hailing from the second-largest slum in India and the largest slum in Chennai, these youngsters had one more thing in common -- they played football regularly, and religiously competed in the tournaments organised by CRY.

“It doesn’t boil down to just the tournament. As a part of this initiative, we had to work with the entire school system as a whole ­-- introducing school facilities, changing the mindset of government to value sport, preventing them from discriminating students based on caste or gender and breaking domestic social barriers for girls to participate in football­ -- to make the tournaments possible. Everyone in Vyasarpadi values the sport now, and parents motivate their kids -- both girls and boys -- to practice football,” said John Roberts (51), Head of the Programme Team for South Region, CRY.

N Thangaraj (56), Project Director of Slum Children Sports Talent Education Development Society (SCSTEDS), who has been working with Vyasarpadi school children for more than two decades said, “In 1997, not one kid in Vyasarpadi attended school. Almost all of them were rag pickers, and victims of domestic abuse, sexual abuse and child labour. Now, thanks to the pull of football, and the discipline it imbibes, 100 per cent of them attend school and so many graduate with degrees of different kinds.”

“Football changed my life. I used to be cooped up at home before and scared to even talk. Being a part of the team has taught me moral values and leadership skills. My ambition is to play for the Indian football team,” Beema Bai (19), captain of Vyasarpadi girls football team said.

“I don’t think I have missed even a day of practice; I train every day. I want to play for the national team one day. Football has pulled me to school even when circumstances were difficult and I felt I had to drop out,” Uma Shankar (18), midfielder of Vyasarpadi boy’s football team said.

The latest tournament ‘Shankara Buildpro Soccer for Child Rights’ was supported by 15 corporate companies, including Ashok Leyland, HCL and Verizon. “We are very proud to be associated with this unique initiative and are excited to see what the Vyasarpadi students have in store for the future,” said V Devanathan, Regional Director Tami Nadu, Shankara Building Products Ltd.