Lessons from Hanuman of Cricket
If Sachin Tendulkar is the Lord Ram of Cricket, then Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary is nothing less than Hanuman of the famed sport. At a time when the lord has played his last match, most of the people are still speculating about the future of Sudhir. For those who are still clueless whom we are talking about, Sudhir Kumar Chaudhary is perhaps the biggest fan of the sport and Sachin in the country. He turns up for every match in the country where Team India is playing. And he had the fortune of lifting the world cup with the god himself.
Well I don't claim to be as big a fan of cricket as Sudhir is, the only time I saw Sachin was through a pair of local binoculars during India -Australia test series at Chinnaswamy stadium Bangalore.
Sudhir has a great story which every startup can learn from in one form or the other.
Just start, there is no right time
Sudhir hails from a small town in Muzzaffarpur, Bihar. The first match where he got noticed was the India vs Australia in Mumbai on 28 Oct 2003. He had cycled for 21 days from Muzaffarpur to reach there. Well this was his first sign of dedication. He was 20 yrs old and didn't seek a muhrat to go ahead with it.
Like most of us who are yet to take the plunge there is no right time until we start working and this is what worked in his favor too.
Improvise
Sudhir went no holds barred to show his passion and even threatened to burn himself is he was not allowed to watch all cricket matches (We don't advise that here!!). He quit his job and collects money to travel to match venues around the country and when he is short of money he cycles his way to the venue.
Ask any entrepreneur and they will give you a list of problems they are currently facing, but in the end how you overcome these problems defines you. Sudhir has become a local celebrity and people are more than willing to help him looking at his dedication.
Be focused, challenges will be there
Once during a match in Kanpur, a senior police officer kicked and dragged Sudhir Kumar when he tried to shake hands with Sachin during the practice session an evening prior to match. But Sachin himself came to his rescue and the police officer later apologized for his misconduct.
Despite his challenges, had it not been for his undying spirit towards the game and the maestro it would have been difficult to get recognized.
Stand out in the crowd
A body painted with tricolor and Sachin's name is what gets him noticed in a crowd of thousands of people and gives him the attention he deserves.
What makes you stand out from you competitors? One thing which differentiates you from others will go a long way to provide the credibility and get people talking about it.
Sooner or later, it will pay off
Looking at his dedication, Reliance Life insurance came up with a campaign to support him financially. Sachin has been sending him the tickets for the matches, And he was invited to lift the world cup in the dressing room by none other than Sachin himself. Also, He was an important character in the documentary "Beyond all Boundaries". But all this did not come without persevering through the odds.
Perseverance has its own prize and nobody remembers those who give up and it isn't vastly different in terms of starting up.
We wish Sudhir a great journey ahead.
