11 minute read
Shane Warne “The King of Spin” gone too soon
Shane Warne
“The King of Spin” gone too soon
Shane Warne, a former Australian bowler, died of a suspected heart attack on 4th March. The news of his demise has shocked the entire cricketing globe. Shane Warne will receive a state funeral after his grieving family accepted government offer.
Cricket fans across the globe are grief stuck over Shane Warne’s demise and express their disbelief and shock.
Shocked, stunned & miserable… Will miss you Warnie. There was never a dull moment with you around, on or off the field. Will always treasure our on field duels & off field banter. You always had a special place for India & Indians had a special place for you. Gone too young! Wrote Sachin Tendulkar on Twitter.
Former spinner Harbhajan Singh tweeted, “No, I can’t believe Shane Warne is no more in this world. Tribute to my hero. Don’t want to believe it. Totally shattered.”
India batter Virat Kohli, playing his landmark 100th Test in Mohali, recalled Warne’s flamboyant persona and the passion he exuded.
“I stand here with disbelief and shock because I got to know him off the field as well, the persona and charisma he brought to every conversation from that I could understand what he brought on the field as well.” Virat Kohli said in a video posted by BCCI.
From British Prime Minister Boris Johnson to Hollywood actor Russell Crowe and Hugh Jackman, tributes came in for the enigmatic spinner.
His teammates continued to remember the cherishable moments they shared with him.
“Hard to put this into words. I first met him when I was 15 at the Academy. He gave me my nickname. We were teammates for more than a decade, riding all the highs and lows together.” Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting wrote on his Twitter page.
“I thought nothing could ever happen to him, He lived more in his life than most people would live in 20,” McGrath wrote.
“He has had a turbulent life but a very full life . . . you just felt, I certa inly did, he would go on forever,” another former Australia skipper Mark Taylor said.
The great Brian Lara and Vivian Richards were in disbelief, like many others, after the loss of the “Greatest Sportsman of All Time.”
“Heartbroken And speechless at the moment. I literally don’t know how to sum up this situation. My friend is gone!! We have lost one of the Greatest Sportsmen of all time!! My condolences goes out to his family. RIP Warnie!! You will be missed,” Lara said.
“Unbelievable. I am shocked to the core. This can’t be true... Rest In Peace, @ShaneWarne. There are no words to describe what I feel right now. A huge loss for cricket,” Richards wrote on Twitter.
Former Australian Prime Minister Kevin
Rudd and current British
PM Boris Johnson also paid rich tributes to the legend.
“Larger than life. A living legend.
Far too young. Both cricket and the country so much poorer for his passing. May you Rest In Peace Warnie. The country mourns his passing,” Rudd wrote.
“Totally shocked and saddened to hear about Shane Warne - a cricketing genius and one of the nicest guys you could meet, who also did a lot to help disadvantaged kids into sport,” Johnson said.
“Shane was the greatest ever cricketer but more than that his character lit up every dressing room, comm box, bar, golf club & friendship group .. his energy & positivity was beyond anyone I have ever known .. he was loyal beyond loyal.
“Everyone wanted to be around him but ultimately he was just a normal guy who could do incredible things,” Vaughan wrote on Instagram.
Indian actor Preity Zinta, who is also an IPL team owner, recalled her interactions with the legend during the league.
“So sad to hear that Shane Warne is no more. He was a magician on the field & such a charismatic & flamboyant personality off the field.I learnt so much about cricket from him every time I met him during the IPL & laughed a lot. He was an inspiration to so many all over the world,” Bollywood actor and Punjab Kings coowner Preity Zinta wrote.
An iconic name in international cricket, Warne, since making his debut in 1992, played 145 Tests for Australia, picking up 708 wickets with his eye-catching legspin. In his 194 ODI appearances, Warne snared 293 scalps.
“I’ve lost a great friend on and off the playing field. “One of the best” my thoughts are with Jackson Summer & Brooke ... RIP Warnster, “ England great Ian Botham on Twitter.
Warne passed away on a day when Australian cricket was already in mourning after the death of wicket-keeping legend Rodney Marsh.
Star opener David Warner wrote, “Two legends of our game have left us too soon. I’m lost for words, and this is extremely sad. My thoughts and prayers go out to the Marsh and Warne family. I just can not believe it. #rip, you will both be missed.”
As many of us know how Sikh organisation (non for profit) have been on the front line across Australia to support for bushfire victims, regular community support, food drives for vulnerable, covid 19 relief work and now helping the flood victims of NSW/QLD
Sikh Volunteers Australia (Melbourne), Sikh community members drove for 34 hrs from Melbourne to the flood-affected areas. They had locked in an industrial kitchen at the Sikh temple in Woolgoolga to prepare freshly cooked vegetarian meals in giant pots for the flood victims and also support with essentials teams at relief centres. Based on the community response it was realised that the Service is much required in Lismore area.
“Volunteering is part of Sikh culture. It gives us a higher purpose and meaning. It doesn’t matter if I don’t sleep for a few days, the feeling I get from helping others is pure peace and calmness.” Jaswinder Singh from Sikh Volunteers Australia (SYA) told the ABC
Turbans 4 Australia (Sydney) have deliv-
ered 2 trucks of bottled water, brand new clothing, groceries, fresh produce, bread and personal care items. They are also delivering average of 600 meals a day at Northern Rugby Leagues in Goonellabah. They have planned to take supplies into town twice a week from Sydney and they are also took deliveries to other smaller town.
T4A specially appreciated SYA is doing a commendable job. Amar Singh of T4A is requesting if anyone wants to donate items in bulk 1 pallet of water or long life milk please get in touch. Donations can be made on our website or PayPal. T4A account details listed on poster.
Australian Sikh support (Melbourne/Adelaide), Senior coordinators of the organisation from Melbourne and Adelaide flew to the affected areas for setting up the base for carrying out relief work to help with the fresh cooked vegetarian meals and other clean up assistance for the flood victims and support teams. According to Daljeet Singh Bakshi , Coordinator SA , On learning about the need of effected community the Australian Sikh Support initiated a joint
relief assistance work with generous support of management of Gurudwara Sahib, Nerang , Gold Coast.
The Joint initiative has started with kitchen facilities and volunteers of Gurudwara and Australian Sikh Support Volunteers of Gurughar are preparing meals for the affected areas in Mullumbimby, Murwillumbah, Chinderah , Tumbulgam, relief centres and it’s continuing .
By Kunal Mirchandani
There’s good reason to be a little nervous whenever Bollywood comes out with a “groundbreaking” new film about LGBT issues. Sure, we may have come a long way from the absurd caricatures of Dostana (it’s hard to believe, I know, but not all us gay men are effeminate and vulgar and keen to rub our butts in your faces). But even recent, earnest attempts at showing same-sex romance onscreen (Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga, Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan) have been relatively bland and forgettable.
So it’s a great relief that Badhaai Do, the latest Indian film to come out from the emerging “comedy tackling social issues” subgenre, manages to be a solid step in the right direction. It is, by far, the best queer representation I’ve seen in a mainstream Bollywood movie.
Shardul (Rajkummar Rao) is a closeted gay cop in Dehradun who spends his days deflecting pressures to get married from his overbearing, extended family. The cognitive dissonance required for Shardul to reconcile being both the victim and the persecutor isn’t entirely lost on him. He is someone intrinsically at odds with himself – at one point, he expresses wonder that as a gay man, he is terrified by cops despite being one himself.
Through a cleverly-written catfishing plot point, Shardul meets Sumi (Bhumi Pednekar), a feisty PE teacher who’s also hiding her homosexuality from her family. As a single lesbian in her early thirties, she is aware of the limitations that Indian society can impose on her. But she’s also definitely more self-assured than Shardul, and is unafraid to speak her mind – especially to people whose opinions she cares nothing about. To appease both their families’ demands, Shardul proposes that they enter a marriage of convenience (“lavender marriage”) to remove any social stigma while continuing to live their own separate lives.
What follows next is a series of chaotic setpieces, as Shardul and Sumi realise that keeping up the charade isn’t as easy as they thought. It doesn’t help that Sumi’s new girlfriend Rimjhim (Chum Darang) has moved into their apartment, resulting in several near-misses that begin stacking up like a house of cards.
Rajkummar Rao brings lovable buffoonery to his performance, and it may be one of the best works of his already prolific career. His prominent moustache and bulging biceps hide a soft vulnerability that occasionally cracks the surface, and it’s both mesmerising and heartbreaking to watch. He’s a little boy pretending to be a big man, and is naive enough to believe he can get away with the con. Bhumi Pednekar also brings a raw emotionality to Sumi’s character, exhibiting a range of emotions that run the gamut from love to rage and resignation in the face of impending defeat. She isn’t someone who wants to actively change minds or fight for queer rights or win legal battles. Her desires are simply to raise a child with someone she loves, even if it means moving to a country where she can legally do that.
BADHAAI DO
Ultimately, I admired the film’s nuance with which it allows its main characters to be flawed, messy and “human” like the rest of us. Shardul’s homosexuality doesn’t automatically make him more evolved. His ingrained misogyny gets deployed in full force during an unexpected visit from a neighbour, where he switches into a “typical Indian man” mode, ordering his wife around in front of his guests. The film doesn’t provide easy, cathartic resolutions to its characters’ dilemmas, either. They don’t take a grandiose walk towards the horizon of freedom but make small, hesitant strides. Coming out for them isn’t one big showy gesture but a series of daily negotiations. The same goes for the family members around this duo, who don’t suddenly “see the truth” and inexplicably repent their ways at the culmination of a preachy sermon. And as a queer person myself, I can admit that it’s thoroughly refreshing to see our community depicted onscreen in a manner that doesn’t feel wishful or patronising.
Badhaai Do is expected to be released on Netflix at some time this month. If you haven’t seen it yet, I highly recommend checking it out.
Kunal Mirchandani is the chairperson of Trikone Australia, a social support group for people of South Asian descent living in Australia. They celebrated their participation in this year’s Mardi Gras Parade with a spectacular float titled “Supernova: An Explosion of Colour”.
