While volleyball is common among school students, turning it into a career is a faraway fantasy. For 24-year-old Erin Varghese, it was a dream come true — employed with the Kerala Police — to perform in front of his home crowd in the second season of the Prime Volleyball League.
Having learnt the nook and crannies of the sport watching his father, uncle and elder brother, Erin started his volleyball journey in seventh grade.
“I started playing as a seventh standard school student in a ground near a Church, after which I shifted to a sports hostel and started playing professionally, entering college,” he said. The Kochi Blue Spikers attacker praised Kerala’s volleyball system, “As every part of Kerala is invested in volleyball, taking it up as a career is supported here.”
Kerala’s volleyball culture
Erin, who hails from Kochi — one of the three places that hosted the PVL season two — felt the difference in tournament exposure as the reason why Kerala produces several international players. “Kerala plays the most volleyball in India. They conduct several tournaments. To get the match experience, Kerala is the right place. We have a lot of fan support, and that helps a lot,” added Erin.
Out of 100-plus players who participated in the second edition of the league, more than 35 of them were from Kerala, a State that has produced some of India’s volleyball greats like Jimmy George, K. Udayakumar and Tom Joseph.
The most common answer as to why the sport is popular in the State as compared to the rest of India is because it is loved by both sections of society — rural and urban.
“Kerala is the centre of Indian volleyball. It gels well with both the sections in the State — rural and urban, therefore, you have great prowess in volleyball,” Joy Bhattacharjya, Chief Executive Officer, PVL, said.
Star show: S. V. Guru Prashanth of Hyderabad Black Hawks (right), with 114 total points, including 102 attacks, 10 blocks and two serves was the most Valuable Player of the season. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
“I thought at first, only northern Kerala was strong (at volleyball), but now you’re getting good players from Thiruvananthapuram and Kochi. So, it’s not just the sort of traditional North Kerala which will give you volleyball players.”
Agreeing with Joy, Shon T. John, member of the Kerala team which won the 2022 National Games, said, “People in Kerala are very crazy about volleyball. Due to PVL even people from villages, mainly kids, watch and are inspired to become like the players they see.” Shon, who was injured just before the season started, is a prominent member of Ahmedabad Defenders, the PVL season two winner. He was the player of the season last year and guided his team to the final.
Shafeer PT, the owner of Calicut Heroes, said, “There is no volleyball in India without our State. Kerala has kept the sport alive in India for so many years, and now there has been a resurrection of volleyball in India [PVL]. Kerala is at the forefront of it.”
Passionate fans
Volleyball in Kerala thrives on the support of its fans, with Chembada, Calicut Heroes’ fan club, being the most popular in PVL. Part of the fandom were around 14-15 college students, who travelled with the team to all three legs of PVL — Bengaluru and Hyderabad before entering Kochi.
Mostly from the Malabar regions, these students are often seen with red horn props, drums, hooters and cymbals in the stadium. “Some are also family members, neighbours and acquaintances of Shafeer, the owner. We also came to support our favourite players — Jerome Vinith, Jose Antonio Sandoval and Fallah Al Jaradi,” said Mubashir, a member of the fan club, who was witness to Calicut losing to Ahmedabad in the second semifinals.
Not just Calicut, even Ahmedabad had its supporters with Dr. P. Suresh Babu, a professor at Ayya Nadar Janaki College in Sivakasi, who led the proceedings.
For the record: Ahmedabad Defenders, which won season two of the Prime Volleyball League. | Photo Credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
The professor, his eight colleagues and 190 students from the B.Sc Physical Education and Sports department were there to support the head coach S. Dakshinamoorthy for the last league match. “We are here to encourage Ragul, Angamuthu Ramaswamy and other players from Tamil Nadu. We are also here to see international players like Jerome and Mohan Ukkrapandian,” Suresh said.
Thrilled by the fans’ presence, Shon said, “Despite my injury, I felt confident with my team — though we are not the home team, we received support. As a team, we did very well, we will do our best next time also.”
Thomas Muthoot, owner of the Kochi team, was amazed to see the fans, who have frequently made it to the stadium. “We have seen the level of investment the fans have shown this season. The enthusiasm people of Kerala have for volleyball is just pure love. No matter which teams are playing, they have turned up in huge numbers to support them.”
Finn Taylor, CEO of Volleyball World compared the fan presence to that of Poland, a country which, he felt, had some of the best fans. “I think every country is unique, but the intensity that you see from the fans translates across the world, and Polish fans are passionate about their national team. The Indian fans are passionate about their respective teams. It’s the same thing, and having the drums and horns adds to the excitement,” said Finn.
Kochi vs Calicut derby
The much-awaited derby in PVL this year took place when Kochi Blue Spikers and Calicut Heroes faced each other in the former’s home ground. It was entertaining with fans dancing, shouting their team names, music blaring and a section of the crowd having their bodies painted too.
“We first started with Kochi, but Calicut was also a big centre. It adds a lot of drama when you see the Kerala derby. I come from Kolkata, where the match between ATK Mohun Bagan FC and East Bengal is huge. When there are two teams from the same State, it creates a derby, which is even interesting,” said Joy.
Adding to Joy’s theory, Shafeer explained the difference between his team and Kochi. “In sports, there have always been derby rivalries — like Manchester United and Manchester City or Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid. The teams are based on different principles and ideals though they represent the same region. Kochi is an equally strong team, but they have different ways of managing their business, and we have our own.”
Thomas had a different perspective and emphasised that the difference between the two teams lays only in the part of Kerala they represent, and in other aspects, it is similar.
“Both teams have an equal desire to win and an equally talented bunch of players, coaching staff, and passionate fans. I might be representing the Kochi team, but I also want the Calicut team to do well, and my best wishes are always with them.”
With the size and audience of PVL growing larger compared to the first season, the next season might be yet another opportunity for the players from Kerala and the fans to showcase their fervour for the sport.
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