Tulsidas Balaram - The tormented genius of Indian football

He has reasons to be angry. One of the all time great players, he has been treated shabbily by football authorities. His contemporaries Chuni Goswami and P.K. Banerjee were granted the coveted Padma Shri award in 1983 and 1990 respectively. But Balaram has not only been ignored, but treated shabbily.

He is deeply hurt that in 1989, when he was recommended for the Padma Shri award and the police verification done, some petty All India Football Federation (AIFF) officials prevented him from getting the award. In 1970, he was made a national selector but many of his recommendations were ignored, so he resigned in a huff.

Later, he became coach of the Calcutta Mayor’s team and trained young players. Internationals like Sangram Mukherjee, Mehtab Hossein and Chandan Das were initially trained by Balaram. When the team was invited to play some matches in Germany, there was deliberate delay in getting Balaram’s visa cleared and the team went without him.

Disgruntled at such step-motherly treatment, Balaram lives a withdrawn life, rarely gives interviews (except about SA Rahim, the coach who discovered and nurtured him), and is quite bitter with life.

A perfectionist, he has always been outspoken. In the 1959 Merdeka tournament final, P.K. Banerjee was dropped from the playing eleven due to lack of form. On the eve of the final, it was Balaram who went to Rahim’s room and pleaded for P.K’s. inclusion in the team. Creditably, Rahim did not consider this as insubordination. On the plane journey back to India, he lauded Balaram for showing exemplary team spirit.

East Bengal is trying to make amends. They have recommended Balaram’s name for the coveted Padma Shri award this year. It is hoped that the youthful sports Union Sports minister Jitendra Singh will react favourably and help Balaram get the award which was long overdue. It will also help him get over the bitterness and be apt compensation for the injustices he has suffered.

With East Bengal, he won the IFA Shield (1958), Durand Cup (1960-Joint), Rovers Cup (1962-Joint) and DCM Trophy (1957 and 1960).

Overall, he scored 104 Goals for the Club and won the Golden Boot of the Calcutta League with 23 goals in 1961. In the same year, he was voted the Footballer of the Year by the Veterans Club.

In the calendar year 1959, he was the highest scorer in the country with 39 goals. As captain, he won the Double of Calcutta Football League and IFA Shield (Joint) in 1961. He helped East Bengal win the Calcutta league in 1961 after a lapse of nine years by scoring an incredible goal.

Balaram outfoxed Mohun Bagan’s tenacious stopper back Jarnail Singh, slid into the penalty box from the left side and scored with the out step of his right boot from an almost zero degree angle.

In 1963, he switched over to BNR to obtain job security. He won the IFA Shield (1963) and Rovers Cup (1964) with them and scored 13 goals for this side. Then on medical advice, he had to quit playing.

Balaram’s finest hour in international matches was against Hungary in the opening group match of the 1960 Rome Olympics. The Olympic football tournament was not for professional players but Hungary was then a communist nation and so included several World Cup stars in their Olympic squad.

The 1960 Hungarian Olympic team had stars like right winger Ferenc Bene and striker Florian Albert in their team. It was almost the same team that beat England, which included legends like Bobby Moore, Bobby Charlton and Jimmy Greaves, 2-1 in a group match at the 1962 Chile World Cup.

Yet, in the 1960 Rome Olympics, Balaram tormented the Hungarian defence with his incredible speed and ball control. Following a Chuni Goswami pass, he scored a memorable goal with a flick. In the closing minutes of the match, the desperate Hungarians were tugging at his shirt or body checking him to break his flow.

He excelled in both the 1958 and 1962 Asian Games. In Jakarta ’62, he scored in India’s victories against both Thailand and Japan. Four years earlier, he excelled in the quarter final match with Hong Kong which went to extra time, with the score line 2-2. Balaram was at his brilliant best in extra time, assisting two goals and scoring once as India ran out 5-2 victors. He played on with a bandage despite getting injured.