The Voice of Indian Cricket
Ravi Shastri’s voice is often identified with some of Indian cricket’s finest winning moments, but for me the voice of Indian cricket will always be Harsha Bhogle. Any commentary in my head on cricket happens in the voice of Harsha. He has been that ubiquitous. I’d say he is the Rahul Dravid of commentary.
I had first heard Harsha’s commentary on radio during the India v/s South Africa series in 1992. I had sat glued to my Walkman as I heard this smooth and sophisticated voice describe the on-field action. He was different, communicating using colloquial English in an Indian accent. There was passion and genuineness in his voice. I distinctly remember at one point they were talking about chocolates. Harsha was actually eating some while commentating. The effect of his words were so magical that I remember rushing to the fridge to find a chocolate for myself!
From that test series onwards, I was a convert. Harsha was always there for every Indian game on TV. His banter with Sir Geoffrey Boycott was great fun to listen to while the match rolled along. He re-defined English commentary in India. Not that there weren’t many commentators before him but they were extremely boring. Harsha was contemporary, he spoke the then young man’s language and nuanced it with sophistication.
Around 9 years ago, I had the privilege of hosting him as a guest speaker for one of my company’s corporate events. My then boss, the late Mr. RB gave me two choices.
“Either you take him for lunch and get to the venue or attend his complete session”
The choice was so easy! I chose option one and it has remained one of my fondest memories.
We had lovely conversation over lunch. It was extremely difficult not to talk cricket with him, but as far I recollect, I did a pretty good job of balancing my role of a corporate representative and a fan boy. Harsha was so easy-going and had no celebrity airs. It’s not that he wasn’t aware of his celebrity status. He was! But he wore it lightly.
He captivated the audience from the moment he stepped on the stage. I caught the first ten minutes of his session but was called out for an event-related crisis. I met him post the session to see him off. The pantry boys had huddled outside, feeling so shy to ask him for a picture. He noticed it and flashed his winning smile and took a lovely picture with them. The boys were over the moon!
Sometime later that year, I was travelling back to Mumbai from Bengaluru and there he was sitting in the business class with his wife, Anita Bhogle. He remembered me! Once again, no airs of being a celebrity, just good old genuineness.
A couple of years later, Harsha was dropped from the BCCI commentary panel over a needless controversy. Once again, his grace shone through. His response was measured and mature. I have no clue what happened behind the scenes but at least on camera he maintained his dignity. After a short hiatus, he was back! It was so lovely to hear the voice of Indian cricket back with his sparkling smile before a game!
Harsha Bhogle is indeed a gifted storyteller. He brings the viewer’s attention to the human interest stories than just the battle between the bat and the ball, the spin and the swing and the pitch and the pace . That is what sets him apart!
He is indeed one of the non-playing G.O.A.T of Indian cricket!
My Cynical Trials
The Voice of Indian Cricket
Ravi Shastri’s voice is often identified with some of Indian cricket’s finest winning moments, but for me the voice of Indian cricket will always be Harsha Bhogle. Any commentary in my head on cricket happens in the voice of Harsha. He has been that ubiquitous. I’d say he is the Rahul Dravid of commentary.
I had first heard Harsha’s commentary on radio during the India v/s South Africa series in 1992. I had sat glued to my Walkman as I heard this smooth and sophisticated voice describe the on-field action. He was different, communicating using colloquial English in an Indian accent. There was passion and genuineness in his voice. I distinctly remember at one point they were talking about chocolates. Harsha was actually eating some while commentating. The effect of his words were so magical that I remember rushing to the fridge to find a chocolate for myself!
From that test series onwards, I was a convert. Harsha was always there for every Indian game on TV. His banter with Sir Geoffrey Boycott was great fun to listen to while the match rolled along. He re-defined English commentary in India. Not that there weren’t many commentators before him but they were extremely boring. Harsha was contemporary, he spoke the then young man’s language and nuanced it with sophistication.
Around 9 years ago, I had the privilege of hosting him as a guest speaker for one of my company’s corporate events. My then boss, the late Mr. RB gave me two choices.
“Either you take him for lunch and get to the venue or attend his complete session”
The choice was so easy! I chose option one and it has remained one of my fondest memories.
We had lovely conversation over lunch. It was extremely difficult not to talk cricket with him, but as far I recollect, I did a pretty good job of balancing my role of a corporate representative and a fan boy. Harsha was so easy-going and had no celebrity airs. It’s not that he wasn’t aware of his celebrity status. He was! But he wore it lightly.
He captivated the audience from the moment he stepped on the stage. I caught the first ten minutes of his session but was called out for an event-related crisis. I met him post the session to see him off. The pantry boys had huddled outside, feeling so shy to ask him for a picture. He noticed it and flashed his winning smile and took a lovely picture with them. The boys were over the moon!
Sometime later that year, I was travelling back to Mumbai from Bengaluru and there he was sitting in the business class with his wife, Anita Bhogle. He remembered me! Once again, no airs of being a celebrity, just good old genuineness.
A couple of years later, Harsha was dropped from the BCCI commentary panel over a needless controversy. Once again, his grace shone through. His response was measured and mature. I have no clue what happened behind the scenes but at least on camera he maintained his dignity. After a short hiatus, he was back! It was so lovely to hear the voice of Indian cricket back with his sparkling smile before a game!
Harsha Bhogle is indeed a gifted storyteller. He brings the viewer’s attention to the human interest stories than just the battle between the bat and the ball, the spin and the swing and the pitch and the pace . That is what sets him apart!
He is indeed one of the non-playing G.O.A.T of Indian cricket!
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