Tags:
Journalism of Courage
Narain Karthekeyan’s smashing performance at Brands Hatch on Sunday when he won the fourth event of the Autosport British Formula-3 championship series was a culmination of long years of struggle for financial support, a battle against odds and a wonderfully focussed chase of a dream that few Indians can even afford to think of.
If there has been a lukewarm reaction to Narain’s feat of becoming the first Indian to win a Formula-3 race, then that is indicative of the country’s collective attitude to any sport that is not cricket.
Why, even the sport’s National governing body, the Federation of Motor Sports Clubs of India (FMSCI), has not thought it fit to publicly congratulate Narain on his performance, a full 48 hours after his historic victory.
The remark of “900 million people and not one World champion” is becoming increasingly irrelevant in view of blinkered approach and attitude of a majority of India’s business houses who cannot look beyond their noses, nay, cricket.
For some years now, Narain has been knocking on the doors of the Corporate World for financial support, but with little luck, though having performed well enough in the Formula Asia and Formula Ford series to merit attention.
From attending Elf Winfield Racing School in France in 1993 as a teenager to Brands Hatch ’99, it has been a long grind not just for 24-year old Narain, but also for his Coimbatore-based family which has sacrificed much in helping him attain his goals.
In between, Narain had a stint in Formula Vauxhall Junior (UK), before moving to Formula Ford and Formula Asia in 1995. The following year, Narain underlined his talent by winning the Formula Asia championship, the first Indian to do so, with seven pole positions, seven wins and seven lap records, which earned him the title “the fastest Indian in the World”.
In 1997, Narain switched to Formula Vauxhall Open and scored a fantastic win in the rain at Donnington Park which provoked the renowned Autosport
magazine to trumpet: “The Indian Prince rules in the rain”.
Last year, Narain moved up to Formula-3 when he joined Team Intersport before shifting to Carlin Motorsport with whom he ended the season with two podium finishes at Spa, Belgium and Silverstone, England.
It has been a steady, if not meteoric, rise, and Narain’s driving skills and ability have increasingly come in for praise.
But then, the Formula racing system is such that mere talent alone will not suffice. Rather, it should be backed by tons of money, and by a rough estimate, over a crore of rupees, per season, at the very minimum.
Apart from driving fee to the team, Narain has to stay put in England for nearly nine months during which he would be involved in not just the championship races, but regular test sessions to work on the set-up of his car.
And so, considering all that he has been through and finally emerged triumphant, it is as good a time as any to give Narain a leg-up in reaching his next target of Formula One racing — the Mount Everest of motor sport.
Narain has the summit in sight, but the final climb, as always, is the toughest. However, having scaled so high, it is only natural to expect him to succeed in his final push to the top and surely, a bit of “oxygen” would do no harm.
Narain’s achievements thus far have received only cursory attention and appreciation. He has carried on regardless with whatever it takes and that is something to be admired — the ambition be the best and the fastest among 900 million people, if not in the World.
