Why I don’t like IPL

Well, we are almost towards end of the season 5 of IPL. No doubt the tournament has evolved to great extent. Everything is now bigger, larger but sadly not better. We all know this tournament is derived on English Premier League and here too we all get our chance to cheer for or be sad depending our sides performance.

But for IPL everything is converted in big melodrama. I don’t call it a tournament for me it’s a show conducted in the cricket ground and for the people of India. In reality in this show only the few Indians are eating the real cake rest of us are just jumping and crying without gaining anything from it. Let’s admit that this jumping, crying is not reaching to our hearts. Indians win against Pakistan in test or one day is far more joyful than this hustle-rustle.

Below are things which I don’t like about IPL:-

1. Commentators- It’s very heartening to see our senior cricketers like Mr.Gasvaskar, Shastri doing commentary for these matches. It is like Sachin playing in our gully cricket for money. Then we also have some foreign x-cricketers like Prof Deno, Demi Morrison; seeing them what they do on screen makes me pity for them.

2. Cheerleaders- For me they still are Cheer-girls. Again watching them dance after every four, six remembers me bar-girls who cheers for their customers to entertain them during their drinks. And in return these customers shower money on them.

In the stadium the way crowd cheers and make gestures watching this so called leaders puts them in the same league as bar-girls. I wonder no female organization is raising any objection for the way these cheerleaders are being ‘used’ during the ‘games’. Why do we need some girls in tight attractive costume to promote the game? What value they really add to the game?

3. Team owners- These very elite people enjoys and encourages their respective teams along with their chamchaas . Even camera is very particular to show reaction of Ms. Zinta or Mr. Khan or even Ambani family. I again wonder whether they don’t have any work other than wasting their precious time. These are the people who have invested huge amount of money for greater returns. Usually they come with so much attitude that as if they are doing charity for the people of India arranging these matches.

4. Celebrity quotient- Though this time we have seen very less celebrities (in India people related to cinema –mostly hero and heroines are only considered celebrity) hired for cheering for the teams.

5. Camera men- These people are more interested showing Mr.Khan, then he waves his hands to the crowd and the foolish crowd takes it as personal gesture from Mr.Khan and shouts from bottom of their…. These camera men are being told that all the emotions on the field and off the field should be reported. So these guys’ works very diligent to catch every glimpse of it. As if emotion missed is equivalent to catch dropped.

6. Finally the crowd – we the people who watch these matches- It’s very shameful that we don’t have any other means of entertainment than watching these matches. In which our states are divided and make them fight against each other and we the biggest fools considering just because we born in that state have the right to show our solidarity for that team or our association for that team. In which most of the time no state players are playing (performing). I doubt whether any hardcore cricket fans watches these matches? As whenever any commentators describe the events of matches he only mentions how electrifying the environment is and how vibrant the crowd is. No one is really bothered about cricket there. It is similar to watching a thriller movie with your snacks and having good time. The worst part is people who watches these matches in pub or while having their drinks. I absolutely hate it, when a batsman takes 2 quick runs or a fielder makes desperate attempt to stop four, we are having our high calories snack along with drinks mixed with aerated soft drink. Piling on fats and making our heart to suffer. It is very contradictory.

The way crowd cheers after famous IPL tune reminds of snake charmer using his instrument to charm the snake and make him dance to his tune.

So what is the solution? Let me clear I am not against IPL matches, only thing bothers me is people’s craziness towards it. I perfectly know economics demand and supply rule. But here artificial demand is being created to promote these matches, and we fall victim to it. That’s real pain for me. I perfectly understands importance of entertainment, you cannot always watch, think and get disturb by shows like ‘Satamev Jayate’ ; but society should be more keen appreciating the shows and less people should keen towards IPL matches.

-Shashank