Individualism is a doubled edged sword. Football is, despitethe glory accorded to individual players, a team game that requires adherenceto team tactics. This makes the rabid individualism that marks the character ofthe sixteen best freestyle footballers in the country, distinctly unsuitablefor team sports.
When Chennai based Pradeep Ramesh played football in 2009,his coach would spend most of his time yelling at Ramesh for trying tricks onthe field that did not ideally go well with the overall team strategy. Miffedat the continuous criticism and determined to make use of his talent, Pradeepdecided to try his hands at freestyle football. A comparatively new art itinvolves juggling a football using all parts of the body to entertain audiencesand outperform opponents.
His passion and dedication to the craft has earned him theRedbull Championship and the number one freestyle footballer status in thecountry. Commenting on his dedication to freestyle football he said “I love it,the feeling is indescribable. I train every day and am able to earn aroundRs.20,000 a month doing shows, corporate events and participating in contests.”His goal is to participate in the world championship and win it for thecountry.
Forgoing engineering, dropping out of college or taking abreak to make a mark in this sport may seem farfetched but for Archis Patil andChaitainya Deshpande from Mumbai, Aditya Oza from Jaipur and Jebin Peter fromIndore, did just that. As Chaitainya says “When I gave up engineering, myparents were shocked. We still have very interesting conversations. They arenot happy but I am very happy and that is very important for me.” Asked whatthis sport meant to them, Jebin Peter said “Only a freestyler will know what itmeans to try stunts with a ball. It is a high doing something you love.”
Archis Patil is the holder of two world records. He brokethe record for the most number of Side Stalls in 60 seconds with 96 on hisfirst try and also broke the record for the most number of shoulder rolls in 60seconds.
None of the four consider themselves footballers. They arefreestylers or individualists. Being a good footballer doesn’t make you a goodfreestyler. “We don’t want to be part of a team format. We do our own thing,”says Jebin Peter. For them, this is the path they choose and aim to representtheir country in the world championships. Freestyle football is not a sport buta lifestyle which is slowly and surely gaining mass appeal in the country. Hurrah for that.
