Like they do every year, Harmandar Bhullar and his wife Satwinder Kaur prayed at the gurdwara in their village in Punjab’s Moga to mark the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev. Yet, for the parents of women’s World Cup-winning skipper Harampreet Kaur, this year’s Gurpurab was extra special.
This time, Satwinder carried with her a yellow toddler-size “boy’s suit”, which was bought on the day Harmanpreet was born. It has a slogan imprinted that now reads like a “prophecy”: “Good Batting.”
Harmandar, a former clerk at a local court, recalled what made him buy the suit immediately after the birth of the first of his three children. “We wanted to tell the world that daughters are equal to sons. That is why we made her wear the suit after she was born. Soon after that, we took her to the gurdwara sahib near our home. Maybe, it was the prophecy written on it…Harman won the World Cup on Sunday and became the world’s best captain. Today we went to the gurdwara sahib to seek Guru Nanak Dev ji’s blessings for Harman’s team. We felt we should take the suit with us,” Harmandar told The Indian Express.
On Wednesday, there was a stream of visitors at Harmanpreet’s home at Dunneke village along the Delhi-Ferozepur highway, 3 km outside Moga town. An Alto hatchback, the first car that Harmanpreet had bought, was parked near the gate. Even as a village elder proposed that the housing colony be named after the women’s captain, Harmandar was on the phone speaking to well-wishers and relatives, many of them keen to know when Moga’s most famous daughter was coming home. Then there was a group call with Harmanpreet’s younger siblings — Adelaide-based Gurjinder Singh and Hemjit Kaur who is based in Canada’s Calgary.
For those who dropped in, the drawing room was a favourite photo spot because it is lined with pictures of Harmanpreet with other cricketers. There is one with her and 1983 World Cup winning captain Kapil Dev, another with Sachin Tendulkar and Virender Sehwag. Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan is also in the gallery.
When she was younger, Harmanpreet was hooked to Sehwag’s batting style, Satwinder said. “She was a fan of Virender Sehwag. She would get his posters as well as picture cards. She wanted to imitate his batting style. She used to collect photographs of Kapil Dev with the 1983 World Cup trophy and Sachin Tendulkar with the 2011 World Cup trophy. It was so touching to see Sachin Tendulkar clapping for Harman and her team (in the final on Sunday),” Satwinder said.
The Bhullars “feel blessed” that they were able to experience the World Cup-winning moment when Harmanpreet took a catch and celebrated with teammates after the 52-run win over South Africa. Both of them were seated in the stands of the DY Patil Stadium during the final.
The picture of 36-year-old Harmanpreet jumping into the arms of Harmandar, after years of heartbreak of missing out on a title, was a “touching moment”. On his phone gallery are multiple pictures of the memorable evening, most of them of Harmanpreet with her teammates after the famous win.
Harmanpreet had shown traits of a leader when she was young, says Satwinder. “As a child, she would play with a plastic bat or washing stick with the boys and girls on the street. But her favourite part of the ‘match-day routine’ involved her making all the other children stand in a line while she would play the role of an inspector. Even when she went to a new place, like my mother’s village Mandiani, she would easily make friends. Those kids would follow her instructions and her. She would behave like a leader back then also,” Satwinder recalled.
The Bhullars are dreaming big now. Moga was once home to triple Olympic gold medallist and Indian hockey captain, the late Balbir Singh Sr. And Harmandar now hopes his daughter will lead India to an Olympic gold at the LA Games in 2028. “The CWG silver (2022) remains a special medal for her… Now she wants to win the Olympic gold for India too,” the proud father said.
They also have a message for parents of girls. “If girls don’t face any opposition to play sport and get all the freedom, then the sky’s the limit for them.”
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