The National Inclusion Cup has attracted 50 teams and over 500 players, all battling for a place in the Indian... Read More

PANAJI: As a child, Anish Kumar remembers how rowdies from his locality constantly invaded his house and robbed money from his parents. Struggling to make ends meet themselves, there seemed to be no way out for his parents in Neelasandra, a residential area in Bengaluru which is inhabited by migrants.

Dotted with four huge slums, most of the youth at Neelasandra are school dropouts. They take to crime and alcoholism, but Anish had a different obsession -- football. The 19-year-old is quite good at the game and believes it’s only a matter of time before he realises his dream of making it to the Indian team.

From the slums of Neelasandra to the Indian team would be quite a story, and it all begins at the SPN National Inclusion Cup at Miramar for Anish.

The National Inclusion Cup, organised by the Nagpur-based Slum Soccer, is a one of its kind event that brings together children from slums across the country and those underprivileged, trying to change their lives through football.

“Life is a constant struggle back home. With football, things can get better. It’s so different here. We get proper food, clean water to drink and a place to stay. I just want to do the best I can,” said Anish, who cycles 3km everyday to fetch water from a tap.

Anish is not alone. The National Inclusion Cup, now in its 17th edition and started by professor Vijay Barse, a retired sports teacher from Nagpur, has attracted 50 teams and over 500 players, all battling for a place in the Indian team for the Homeless World Cup in Finland later this year. While Anish has moved out of Bengaluru for the first time – apart from a football trip to Mysuru – and made the overnight bus journey to Goa, Junaid Ahmed Laway had to endure five days of travel just to get here.

“I can see that the journey has been worth it. Life can be an adventure and I want to see the world outside Kashmir,” said Junaid, a 21-year old who is dreaming of catching the selectors’ eye and seeing the world in all its glory.

Hailing from Pampore, famous as Kashmir’s ‘ Saffron Town’ for its precious high-grade spice, Junaid has heard of a “beautiful world,” but doesn’t really know what it looks like beyond his neighbourhood. On a small ground, he’s seen children of his age kick the ball around and it’s this beautiful sport that can now become his passport to the world.

Kashmir has done well here, winning four of their five games, losing only to Meghalaya in penalties, with Junaid among the goals.

Kajal Shiriange has a different goal. Having lost her father a decade ago, the 21-year-old girl from Gondia district in Maharashtra has seen her mother struggle all her life, sweeping floors at railway stations and godowns, so that they don’t go to bed hungry.

“I want to help my mother. I know if I become a good footballer, I can possibly get a government job and then ease the burden which my mother has been carrying all her life,” said Kajal.

Life has been tough, and cruel, for the Shirianges, who don’t have a house which they can call their own and live with their supportive grandmother.

“When this tournament ends, not just me but all of us will be in tears. We’ve never seen anything like this before,” said Shiriange, raving about the bread and jam she was fortunate to have for breakfast on Sunday morning.

Nobody has had it easy here. At Miramar, the goals for India’s underprivileged are not quite the same.

