Dhyan Chand - A Story of Focus
by Falguni Gokhale
“Dhyan Chand - A Story of Focus” by Falguni Gokhale. Published by Tota books as part of “Books To Inspire” series. An awe-inspiring story of Dhyan Chand who was popularly known as the wizard or the magician of Hockey.
The story starts off with Dhyan Chand as a little boy. He did not have a serious interest in sports at that time. He liked to wrestle and play games with his brothers using branches of trees and balls made from old rags. His father worked in the British Indian Army. They kept moving to various cities due to his father’s transfers which made it difficult for Dhyan to continue schooling.
At the age of sixteen, Dhyan joined the army like his father. It was where his journey with Hockey began. He discovered that he had a natural flair for it and started practising immensely. He would practice for hours together after his duty hours in moonlight. Thus he earned the nickname of “Dhyan Chand” as the word Chand meant the moon in Hindi.
The book then goes on to talk about how he started playing for the Indian Hockey team and went on to represent India in the Olympics on various occasions. His achievements were extraordinary and he brought great glory to the team as well as our country. His love for the country made him reject an extraordinary offer made by Adolf Hitler to join the German Army as a Colonel and become a German citizen. A remarkable quote from him was - “When we used to travel, the name of our country and the game were the only two things that mattered.”
A must read for all children. The last page has a picture of Dhyan Chand and more facts about him. My seven year old loved the book so much that we read it several times within a few days of its arrival. It was a good means for us to know about hockey and the Olympics. Thank you Vidya Mani of Funky Rainbow for recommending this lovely book!
I wanted to post the review on August 29 which happens to be Dhyan Chand’s birthday and is celebrated as National Sports Day in India. However the extraordinary performances of our hockey teams in the current Olympics made me pen down the review sooner :) As I write this, I look forward to the bronze medal matches that both the men’s and women’s hockey teams of India await to play. Hopefully this time round, they win the (now) elusive Olympic medals in hockey.
Where to buy from?
The publishers Tota Books here.
An independent indie bookstore, Funky Rainbow, from where I buy many of my books.