An artist kicks off to bring Indian football back to glory

India’s football legacy doesn’t just belong to individual glories. The Durand Cup, the country’s oldest football tournament in India, is also the 3rd oldest football competition in the world. The city of Kolkata hosted League football long before Real Madrid or even before FIFA existed. But how many sport-loving people take the trouble to go and see Durand Cup and why should they? Why have things come to such a deplorable pass?

These were the discomforting questions that Riyas Komu raised in his solo show, entitled ‘MARK HIM’ at The Guild gallery, a couple of years ago. Apart from showcasing his works, he also started a debate on the subject. The artist himself is very much passionate about the game. Often he arrives at the local football ground to play the game, which to him is ‘more about connecting socially.’

His ‘Subrato to Cesar’, a new body of works at Mumbai’s Gallery Maskara rekindles his passion tinged with a touch of sadness. An accompanying note mentions:

“We have just indulged in passing the ball amongst ourselves in our own half without making much progress even when much of the opposition to our soccer advances have come from within. It's therefore time to move back into the locker room and take a fresh look at the game that most of us love. Our own footballers are a forgotten lot! When we join the world to celebrate the world cup dreams, much of which would be played out on the TV and other media, we must open our eyes to other realities that are immediate to ourselves. Here is an invitation to an effort that in some way would be able to make a beginning. ”

Even as we support the likes of Julio Cesar we could just move backwards and appreciate a bit our own Subratos. The show can just be the starting point. You’re welcome for the ‘kick off’, Riyas Komu concludes.

This new show tries to revisit memories of one of the oldest sport in India. It's as much about art as it's about a game and also about the art and socio-political dimension of football that we often tend to ignore.