Hockey Olympian working on another book

Deepkamal Kaur

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, September 26

Step into his house at Radio Colony and you will feel like having entered a nice photo gallery. Preserved and arranged in a tasteful manner, hockey Olympian Col Balbir Singh Kular (76) has put up photographs and memorabilia of his yesteryears along the two long parallel walls of the lobby area.

All photographs have been mounted on highlighted background. The prominent ones include a group photograph of the Indian hockey team that won the Asian gold medal in Bangkok in 1966 and his picture with former President Zakir Hussain while receiving the Arjuna Award at a young age as a cadet.

In fact, the gallery has his pictures with six former Presidents — S Radha Krishnan, VV Giri, Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed, Giani Zail Singh and Shankar Dyal Sharma. The gallery also has his picture with hockey wizard Dhyan Chand, dating back to December 1971.

Besides, he has all his medals and badges put up on a glass-covered box, a group picture “The Balbirs” portraying him with three other namesake hockey Olympians and a special commemorative stamp and first day cover released by the India Post in December 1966, featuring him along with other players of the 1966 Asian Games.

Pointing to a family picture on the same wall in which he, his son-in-law and son are seen in the Army uniform, Col Balbir shares, “It has been now four generations and 118 years that our family has given to the Indian Army. My grandfather was a part of the World War-I and my father fought in the WW-II. My father was a hockey player too. He played in the nationals and I learnt a lot from him.”

Colonel Balbir recalled his experiences of the 1968 Olympics where he had scored three goals and his team brought home the bronze medal. “Owing to tearing of ligaments around my knee during a game, I had to retire early in the 1970s. But I have never had any regrets. I was soon taken as a coach of the Indian hockey team and later the women’s team. I also remained a selector for a long time,” he says.

“Penning books has been my favourite pastime. I have already written a book, ‘The Colonel’s Deadly Scoop’, which is more like a coffee table book with many full page exclusive photographs that I had managed to collect over a period of four-five decades,” he shares.

“I am now working on another untitled book, which will be based on my tryst with Saragarhi. I too was a part of the 36 Sikh Battalion and the book will have photographs and memorable events related to the place where the historical battle was fought,” he says, showing some notes, handouts and historical pieces that he collected.

On a lighter note, he adds: “I studied at the local Cantonment Board High School where the teaching of English language started in Class VI. Thanks to the global exposure and my wife who has been a teacher of English, I am able to follow my passion of writing books. I have slowed down a bit due to the ongoing pandemic, but I think it is time to restart again.”

His memorabilia

• His gallery has his pictures with six former Presidents of India. Besides, he has all his medals and badges put up on a glass-covered box, a group picture "The Balbirs" portraying him with three other namesake hockey Olympians and a special commemorative stamp and first day cover released by the India Post in December 1966.
• He is now working on another untitled book, which will be based on his tryst with Saragarhi. He was also a part of the 36 Sikh Battalion and the book will have photographs and memorable events related to the place where the historical battle was fought.