Vikram Partap Singh, until the 2023-24 season, was an up-and-coming forward in the Mumbai City FC side, looking to make the best of the game-time he got.
In his first three seasons of the Indian Super League (ISL), he made six starts. In the next one, the 2023-24 season, he made 14.
He scored seven goals, assisted thrice and became a formidable member of Petr Kratky’s attack as it won the ISL Cup last season.
When Vikram begins this season, he will play under the same coach, same club and in the same league. The only difference would be his biggest cheerleader, his father, not being with him anymore.
“It does feel empty. But when I go home, all my relatives come home. So, it kind of soothes the pain. However, when I leave, it gets difficult for my mom because there’s hardly anybody left,” Vikram tells Sportstar.
Vikram’s father, Vasudev Singh, who played in amateur leagues as a defender, was his primary source of inspiration. In January 2024, he passed away.
“[My father would say] ‘My day is made watching you score today,’” Vikram had said, after scoring a hat-trick against NorthEast United in a 4-1 win last season.
As his voice cracked, he continued, “But today when I make the phone call home, he won’t be there to speak to me.”
Like father, like son
Born in Gurdasapur, Punjab, Vikram followed his father’s footsteps, playing football on local fields, and watching his dad pass the ball to him on cold winter mornings.
“He (my father) used to play, so I started playing after watching him. Like some say they are mumma’s boy, I was papa’s boy,” Vikram recollects, smiling.
He joined the Chandigarh Football Academy when he was barely 10 years old and his dream to become a professional footballer slowly started taking shape.
“A lot of the players in the senior team, as well as the (U-17) World Cup team, came from the Chandigarh Football Academy,” he says.
“It is a government-funded academy which starts inducting players at the under-10 level and takes care of all needs of the inductees, their accommodation, food and education. I think more such academies should come up in India.”
Vikram Partap Singh (standing) with his teammates at the Chandigarh Football Academy. | Photo Credit: Instagram/Chandigarh Football Academy
There he watched young aspiring footballers train, one of whom was Amarjit Singh Kiyam, a player who went on to lead India at the FIFA U-17 World Cup in 2017.
And his eyes sparkled.
“I remember when I went there, I saw a player from the under-16 team getting a chance to play for India and that became my personal goal from that day. Players in the lower age group learn and get inspired by the ones who are graduating or playing in higher age groups,” he says.
Vikram eventually started crawling up the ladder, playing for the under-12, under-14 and and then the under-16 side at the AFC Asian Cup 2018.
In a group containing Iran and Vietnam, India qualified for the quarterfinals, riding on a solitary goal. The goal scorer: Vikram.
Though India was knocked out in the quarters by heavyweight South Korea, the winger has not looked back since.
A year later, he helped India win the OFC Youth Development Tournament, scoring twice and within a few years, a senior team call-up came knocking.
At the AFC Asian Cup 2023 against Australia, as thousands of Indian fans cheered “India! India!” at the Ahmed bin Ali Stadium in Qatar, Vikram took the pitch replacing his club teammate Lallianzuala Chhangte in the last few minutes of the game.
A chapter of his dad’s dream was complete.
“You know, he (Vikram’s father) watched me make my India debut. I would have probably started the third game but I had to go back. But I am happy that he saw me make my senior debut,” Vikram says.
That was the penultimate match his father saw. By the third match, he was informed that his father was no more.
“I hadn’t told anyone in the team because we had a match,” he told Scroll in a previous interview. “People asked and I just said there’s some problem at home. Later on, I told them. It was difficult for me to talk, so I didn’t speak to anyone.”
It has been nearly eight months since that loss and the youngster looks to be moving on from denial, anger, bargaining and depression to finally acceptance.
“For me, I have football that I love and I try to absorb some love from it but what about my mom? I guess time will heal things,” he sighs.
Back to the dressing room
After a brief break, as a professional, Vikram returned to Mumbai City and became a regular under new coach Petr Kratky, who had taken over the side in December last year.
The forward, who had a goal and an assist in the ISL in the first 10 league games scored six times and assisted twice in the next 10, eventually winning the ISL Cup.
“The playing style did not really change because both coaches came from City Football Group. But after Petr came, personally, I got a lot of freedom. I used to play along the right (under Des Buckingham) but he tried me along the left and I felt more comfortable there.”
As a player, at 22, he has two ISL Shields, two ISL Cups and an Emerging Player in the ISL in his cabinet.
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While off the field, he continues to remember the lessons from his father, some of his learnings have come from foreign players at Mumbai City.
“I think the difference between the foreign players (here) and Indian players is not very big but there are some, like (Ahmed) Jahouh, (Mourtada) Fall and Greg (Stewart) who teach you a lot about the game,” he explains.
Mumbai City is part of the City Football Group, a conglomerate which owns 12 clubs around the world, including Premier League champion Manchester City.
Before the 2024-25 season, the forward had a chance to train in Manchester.
“Till under-23, I think there is not much of a difference between Indians and foreign players. The only difference is in facilities, ground and diet. I was at Manchester City last month and I trained there for some time,” Vikram says.
“I realised that the difference between us and them is there but not as much as we think it to be. But their facilities and mentality are something else and I am not sure when that will come to India.”
Vikram was recuperating from a minor injury during pre-season which kept him out of the Intercontinental Cup while he continued his recovery and training in Thailand with the squad.
“The pre-season has been (physically) really tough so far. It is relatively easier (to adapt) in Thailand because there is less heat. Now, in Mumbai, rain might be a problem. So, it might be a challenge to adapt to the conditions here,” he says.
Mumbai City will open the season against Mohun Bagan Super Giant on Friday, a team that created a rivalry of sorts with it last season. The two competed for the ISL Shield and the Cup, with Mohun Bagan winning the former and Mumbai City, the latter.
Vikram feels this season, his club will leave no stone unturned to take all that is up for grabs, the Shield, the Cup and potential glory at the continental level.
“From the very beginning, the aim will be to go for Asia and also win all three trophies. The most important thing, now that the teams are being promoted, is more matches should be played,” he says.
Will that keep Vikram happy personally? He pauses and then reflects on a time shortly after his father’s demise.
“After January, it (my form) picked up a bit because goals started coming but somewhere, I felt that it was better before because I was not getting the joy of playing football like before,” he says.
After a cold sigh, he realises life has to go on.
“I used to think of getting 10 goals from 20 games in a season, but he used to say that when I have 20 games at hand, why not score 20 goals? So, that is what I think of achieving, scoring 20 goals in as many matches,” he says.
When the ISL begins, the forward would be ready, with his studs laced up, shin pads in place and socks pulled up. Vikram will then take the field, look up at the sky and kiss his finger, hoping to keep his word and that of his father.
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