Dressed in ripped jeans, a red shirt and high top trainers, Parthiban Parthasarathy walks across Mylapore’s P.M. Nagar ground with confidence. The small, unkempt space, with overgrown weeds, stagnant water and goats wandering around might not seem like the ideal place for football practice. But for Parthiban, none of it matters. It’s just the sport that has his focus. The 23-year-old, who returned just 10 days ago from Amsterdam after playing in the Homeless Soccer World Cup, has stars in his eyes. It was a “life-changing opportunity” he says, and a dream come true.
“It was the first time I went abroad; travelled on a plane. It was such a wonderful experience,” says Parthiban, who plays for the Chennai Slum Soccer team and now coaches younger players as well. “For as long as I can remember, I’ve loved playing football. Even as a child, I would spend hours kicking the ball around with my friends and play a match with the neighbourhood boys. Cricket, somehow, never attracted me the way football did,” adds the Cristiano Ronaldo fan. He even sports a hairstyle similar to his idol. “Messi is good too, but he only uses left moves, while Ronaldo is good with both left and right leg moves,” he smiles, saying he watches as many matches as he can on YouTube.
But it was only in 2009 that Parthiban began to professionally play the sport. “My coach at school sent me for State-level selections and that was my first brush with professional football. Until then, I didn’t even own a pair of football shoes and would play barefoot. It was around this time that my brother-in-law bought me my first pair of shoes. He is the one who has encouraged and made it possible for me to realise my dreams,” he says.
His father’s demise led to him giving up his education and taking up a job. “I had to support the family. So I joined an online company’s dispatch department,” he says. The one thing that he refused to give up on though was his love for football. “We’d play every time we got some spare time — mornings, evenings after work and on weekends. It was on one such weekend session that Subramaniam sir noticed us playing on the beach. He invited us to play with the children he coached at St. Bede’s ground. Being able to play with school children, giving them tips and having them look up to us made me feel confident. Nobody would otherwise encourage us,” he explains.
It was during these sessions that Parthiban got noticed by Umesh of Slum Soccer Nagpur, who had come to Chennai to scout for players and develop the team here. “He told us about the Homeless World Cup and the opportunities it opened up. But I didn’t really understand the concept much, so I got Subramaniam sir to meet him, who then explained how much we stood to gain,” he explains. One thing led to another and Parthiban was selected to play with the Indian men’s team at Amsterdam in September this year. “We left for Amsterdam on September 9 and were there for nine days. Though we didn’t win the World Cup, we finished in the 33rd place and also won the Sports Gen Cup,” he smiles. He goes on to add, “My family was thrilled that I went abroad. Most of us have never even gone out of the city. I hope, one day, I can take my mother somewhere abroad. I know it will mean a lot to her.”
According to the footballer, none of this would have been possible without the support of his family and colleagues. “My office has been very encouraging and gave me two months leave to prepare for and participate in the Homeless World Cup, apart from time off to play local matches. Even my wife {he got married three months ago} didn’t mind me being away for so long. We are childhood sweethearts and she knows all about my aspirations. I brought back chocolates for her from Amsterdam,” he smiles shyly, as he looks at her name imprinted with henna on his hand.
For now though, Parthiban wants to work towards improving the P.M. Nagar ground and conducting summer workshops for children. “I owe a lot to Akshay Madhavan, who heads Slum Soccer here. He’s always made me feel like an equal; he always has a warm hug to give us instead of a mere handshake,” he says.
