When Lata raised funds to reward Kapil’s Devils

When Kapil Dev lifted the World Cup at the Lord’s balcony, the then BCCI president late NKP Salve had a different worry: the board barely had money to pay the team 20 pounds daily allowance; how would it reward them for the stupendous victory? 

Salve turned to Raj Singh Dungarpur, who in turn sought help from Lata Mangeshkar, his close friend, and an ardent cricket fan, to do a pro-bono concert in Delhi. 

The Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium packed to capacity, and the BCCI raised enough money to pay each of the 14 members Rs 1 lakh cash award. 

Since then, the board reserved two VIP tickets for her at any ground in the country where India played an international match. 

“Just like we have quota for sponsors, State associations, there were two tickets at every cricket match for Lata ji,” said a senior BCCI official.