Category: Sports

Between 1923 and 1942, a handful of young Parsi men took off on three expeditions from Mumbai to cycle around the world. A photo exhibition tells their story. Written by Parth Khatau | Indian Express Bicycle Diaries: Rustom Bhumgara (from left), Adi Hakim, and Jal Bapasola in Alexandria, Egypt, in 1924. BOMBAY, MARCH 22, 1931.… Continue reading The men from Mumbai who cycled around the world

Ever wondered what it takes to make it big in life? A bit of inspiration, zeal to not drift, the magic potion of immense hard work and of course some incredible courage. Meet Jamshedpur-born Dinaz Vervatwala, a true example of grit and determination. Born to a middle class Parsi family and studied at Sacred Heart… Continue reading Dinaz Vervatwala : A tale of grit and determination

Southern California discovered cricket in the late 19th century, two centuries after the sport reached American shores, but the region lost little time in taking to the game with enthusiasm. The cricketing season began every summer in May. Several counties—including Los Angeles, Santa Monica, San Diego, and San Francisco (in mid-California)—had their own leagues. Practice… Continue reading Maneckji Bhumgara: The Indian bowler who took American cricket by storm in the 1900s

Parsis have played an important part in Indian cricket history. Parsis were the first Indian side to visit England in 1886. And around 12 Parsis, such as Farrokh Engineer, Polly Umrigar, Nari Contractor, have played for the Indian cricket teams over the years. The last big name being India women’s captain Diana Edulji. There still… Continue reading Arzan Nagwaswalla Plays Cricket For Gujarat: First Parsi in Decades to Play at State Level

October 15, 1923 was yet another mellow Monday morning in Bombay, but the city’s central district of Grant Road was ablaze with blaring music. The erstwhile Bombay Weightlifting Club had organised a send-off for six of its young members — Adi B Hakim, Gustad G Hathiram, Jal P Bapasola, Keki D Pochkhanawala, Nariman B Kapadia… Continue reading 10 Indians in the 1920s-30s went on cycling expeditions; 7 succeeded

Nariman Jamshedji Contractor was born on March 7, 1934 at Godhra Gujarat by accident. His pregnant mother was coming on a train from Dahod in Gujarat to Bombay for delivery when all of a sudden she went into labour. Contractor’s uncle was the driver of the train. He arranged medical assistance and dropped her at… Continue reading Nari Contractor: A Captain with Grit and Impeccable Character

Most of the successful coaches that we see around today are familiar faces. But usually their fame precedes their coaching careers and we know them from their years on the professional circuit. Be it Stefan Edberg for Roger Federer, Zinedine Zidane for Real Madrid, Subhash Bhowmick for the Calcutta Maidan or Pulella Gopichand for the… Continue reading Cyrus Poncha: The architect of India’s squash empire

Rayomand Banajee racing a Volkswagen Ameo, stunned the competition with an unexpected third place finish in the Unrestricted Category at Round 1 of the MMSC FMSCI National Drag Racing Championship. What started as a fun filled suggestion from Sirish Vissa, Head of Motorsport – Volkswagen India, soon turned serious as the Volkswagen Motorsport team put… Continue reading Rayomand Banajee takes VW Ameo to Podium in National Drag Race