SPIRITUAL BOWL

At Pune8217;s Vedic schools, a game of cricket can be an enlightening experience

With his white linen dhoti gathered around his knees and a cotton shawl draped around his shoulders, 15-year-old Narsimhan Purshottam Kulkarni swings his bat. The ball finds its way to the fence and loud cheers follows. It8217;s the kind of applause that fills the ground every evening, hours after the Vedic chants die down. 8220;You should line up for Twenty20,8221; one of Kulkarni8217;s teammates suggests.

Ghaisas Guruji, Kulkarni8217;s teacher at the Ved Ashram in Pune, looks on indulgingly. 8220;These children cannot seem to get cricket out of their systems and there8217;s nothing I can do about it,8221; says the teacher who trains young boys in Rig Veda. The 12-year course at the ashram is based on the strict tenets of the guru-shishya tradition.

8220;The boys come to me after they turn 12 and by then, cricket is already an integral part of their lives. So though it8217;s not part of the curriculum, I let them play the game in the evenings,8221; he says.

Fifty kilometers away, in Lonavala, Swami Parthasarthy has no such conflicts in his mind about mixing cricket with spirituality. Not only does the sprawling yet spartan Vedanta Academy have its own cricket team 8212; they have toured six countries and played league matches 8212; 80-year-old Parthasarthy sometimes gets his chance in the batting and bowling line-up, though 8220;purely on merit8221;. 8220;Just last year, he took a hatrick,8221; says Prayagraj, a senior disciple and captain of the academy8217;s cricket team.

So there. Die-hard cricket fans are right after all when they say that the game may not have originated here, but India is the spiritual home of the game. Cricket figures high on the daily agenda of many spiritual centres in Pune 8212; amidst the prayers, meditation and scriptures.

8220;The basic tenet of Arya Samaj is that it wants the spiritual, academic and physical advancement of every person. Cricket as a game does all of that,8221; says S.C. Nagpal, former income tax commissioner and the managing trustee of Pune8217;s Arya Samaj trust. 8220;We encourage all games in these camps, but cricket specifically teaches youngsters to be winners. At the camps, the mornings are devoted to Vedic sanskars, the afternoon to arts and dramatics and the evenings to the sport.8221;

At the Vishwa Jagriti Mission Trust in Pune, around 30 children play the game regularly. 8220;We use cricket to teach them the value of team spirit,8221; says Ma Krishna Kashyab who runs the ashram.

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The Vedanta Academy not just merges cricket principles with those of life but also proves how the two complement each other. 8220;Vedanta teaches you how not to buckle under pressure and to stay focused on the present rather than slipping to the past or worrying about the future. It8217;s exactly the kind of mindset a player on the cricket field needs to have. What did Misabah Pakistani cricketer do after hitting all those sixes? He tried to play a short fine leg and gave away the match. It was all a result of his agitated state of mind at that moment. Do you know that the Academy team 8212; made up of amateur students who have come here to learn Vedanta 8212; has defeated professional league teams of South Africa and England,8221; says Prayagraj.

Parthasarthy, the 80-year-old off-spinner and vice-captain of the Vedanta team, proclaims that if he took the Indian team under his wings, they would win not just the Twenty20 championship but also the 50-50 World Cup.

Sunanda Mehta

Sunanda Mehta is the Resident Editor of The Indian Express in Pune. She is a distinguished journalist, columnist, and author with over three decades of experience in the media industry. Educational background: A merit-lister in her 12 th in CBSE (5th rank in Humanities) Sunanda stood first in History in the Board for which she was awarded the Dr Tarachand Gold Medal. She is a triple-graduate with a Bachelor of Arts (History Honours) from Lady Shri Ram College, New Delhi, Bachelor of Education, Delhi University (on scholarship) and Bachelor of Communication and Journalism, University of Pune. Professional Background Role: As Resident Editor, she oversees the Pune edition of The Indian Express, managing local news coverage, investigative features, and editorial direction for the city. Author: She is an accomplished author, known for her biographies. Her notable books include: The Extraordinary Life and Death of Sunanda Pushkar published by Pan Macmillan (2019). The book was long-listed for the Atta Galatta award for nonfiction and Auther award for best debut author. Majestic Musings - Translation of poems from 100 year old Badshaian from Punjabi to English (2023) Behind the Big Screen- the untold stories of child actors published by Bloomsbury India (2024) Focus Areas: While Sunanda has reported on various subjects from civic to political to investigative and crime, her forte remains long-form human-interest stories, heritage and gender issues. Core Column: "Against All Odds" Sunanda curates and writes a signature series titled "Against All Odds," which profiles individuals who have overcome significant personal, medical, or professional challenges. Recent notable articles (2025) The Story of Dr. Harinder Dhaliwal (July 2025): A Pune AFMC topper who became a neurologist in Canada despite becoming paraplegic. Jayoo Patwardhan’s Cancer Journey (Jan 2025): How the National Film Award-winning designer defeated cancer. Partha Iyengar’s Emergency mid-air (Aug 2025): The story of how Gartner’s India head survived a massive heart attack during a long-haul flight. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) Her recent reportage continues to explore deep personal narratives and Pune’s socio-environmental landscape: 1. Personal Narratives & Closure "'I grieved for him 10 years after his murder, found closure to unsolved case'" (Dec 14, 2025): A poignant feature on Vineet Alurkar, son of the late Pune music legend Suresh Alurkar, and how digitizing his father’s collection helped him heal. "A 40-day journey home: how Christopher Benninger's partner gave him the gift of memories" (Nov 23, 2025): A moving tribute to the late acclaimed architect Christopher Benninger and his final trip to the US. "'After 38 years I finally met my biological mother'" (Sept 28, 2025): Chronicling the journey of an adopted daughter from Zurich searching for her roots in Pune. 2. Civic & Heritage "'Vetal Tekdi belongs to common citizens'" (Oct 20, 2025): An interview with environmental activist Dr. Sushma Date on the community-led protection of Pune’s vital green lungs. "'Military village' Apshinge recalls living through war days" (Aug 12, 2025): A report from a village in Maharashtra where nearly every household has a member in the armed forces, focusing on their legacy and current anxieties. 3. High-Profile Commentary & Investigations "Malegaon blast acquittals: 'I was expecting this verdict'" (July 31, 2025): An interview with former special public prosecutor Rohini Salian following the controversial acquittals. "Grounded, license cancelled... she decided to soar higher" (March 30, 2025): The story of Dr. Harpreet A De Singh, Air India’s first woman pilot from 1988, and her transition to leadership and meditation. Signature Style Sunanda Mehta is known for her empathetic storytelling. Unlike standard news reporting, her features often read like narrative non-fiction, focusing on the psychological and emotional resilience of her subjects. One of her articles in The Indian Express titled 'The Quality of Mercy' was converted into a film Rubaru Roshini produced by actor Aamir Khan. She is a strong advocate for Pune's heritage and environment, frequently using her platform to amplify citizen-led movements. X (Twitter): @sunandamehta and @ExpressPune ... Read More