EXCLUSIVE - 'Reaching the top and staying there for so long, only Patna Pirates could do it': Ambassador Neetu Chandra

Patna Pirates ended its home leg with an emphatic 41-20 win over UP Yoddha. Neeraj Kumar scored joint-most tackle points in the 1st half by a player in Pro Kabaddi League.

Pardeep Narwal recorded his second consecutive super 10, also reaching 800 touchpoints in the PKL in the process.

While the action has now moved to Ahmedabad, brand ambassador of Patna Pirates, Neetu Chandra exclusively interacted with DNA Web.

How big a fan are you of Kabaddi?

I am, I have played district level Kabaddi. I started in Patna. I have been playing Kabaddi since my childhood. Since I am an international taekwondo player, I have also been associated with NBA basketball for the past six-seven years. Have always been a sports girl since my childhood. I had even represented India when I was in the ninth grade in Taekwondo. I got a black belt in school and I have played district level kabaddi. So I think these are my background that I was offered to be done back then and I am very happy.

How the switch from sports to acting?

I have been doing one-act plays, music and dance in my school time also. But then I was destined to be an actress and that's how I got. I kept getting offers and kept saying yes. With every project, I proved myself. People have loved me and kept giving me more and more work. Right after that, Garam Masala came along, it was my school time I got the role and what could be better if you are launched at that young age with Akshay Kumar and John Abraham. Then the whole attention came to me after Traffic Signal got a national award. Oye Lucky Lucky Oye also got a national award.

One by one, one after another, I kept getting roles and I kept doing it. That's how, you know, I became an actress. But I had already represented India three times. 

 

 

 

 

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It was a pleasure to receive #Sushilkumarmodi sir with @patnapirates owner #Rajeshvshah sir at #Patliputrastadium #Patna yesterday for #vivo @prokabaddi session 7 #patnaleg  @starsportsindia Thank you to all the awesome Patna audience for all the support 

A post shared by Neetu N Chandra (@neetunchandra) on Aug 3, 2019 at 9:25pm PDT

Your participation at the basketball celebrity charity challenge

I am associated with NBA for so long and recently, I played basketball with Floyd Mayweather and Snoop Dogg. They had a celebrity charity event. I was the only girl and the only Indian playing there.

How was the experience of being a lone woman in the team?

I don't see it in a different light, I see as a squad person playing with other people. Yes, it is a great experience. And a great feeling that everybody, all the people who were playing there were achievers in their own way. And they had done big shows, TV and theatre. They were ex and current NBA players too. So all these experiences are totally different. And yes, I did learn. I live my life by learning every second of my life. I talked to people and I learned something from that person and that's how I develop my personality. 

What's your take on men's games getting more coverage than women teams?

I think there's a lot of internal management issues going on with the women's team. I don't know much as to why it was discontinued. But the fact that in a positive side if you see the Bihar kabaddi girls team just gone and they have done really, really well. Apart from that, kabaddi coming to this level is good and Bihar is in the second spot in India right now.

I'm sure eventually the girls will come up. Once Kabaddi gains popularity, not only the girls' team but also children's team should also come. They should also do kabaddi for elders also. If you see anything getting popular then everybody gets into that league. I think that's what is going to happen with kabaddi. We all have to hold on to one thing, which is making it really popular - which is Pro Kabaddi for men right now - and I think it is fine because it will get the women to popularise and really, really at the high level. The corporate side, investing in it and teams getting it and people want to buy more teams. 

It could have been the other way around also with women kabaddi also they could have made it so popular. But since this is a male-dominated society, let's get benefited out of that. Let women get benefited from men's kabaddi and make it more popular. 

What about Patna Pirates performance so far?

The league has just started. We have 22 games to play, we have played just six to seven games. It is too early to say anything. They will always bounce back from that I know I've seen the two months of camp, they have worked really hard mentally and physically. So they will come back. About their other performances, the last two-three games were a little slower, but I can't say what will happen in the future. I totally believe that they can do really, really well in the future. 

 

 

 

 

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Waiting for tonight  Good luck @patnapirates  God Bless

A post shared by Neetu N Chandra (@neetunchandra) on Aug 7, 2019 at 5:20am PDT

Any opposition player you want in the team? 

I think the players and the team of Patna Pirates are very very good. They're doing their best and putting their heart and soul. I think we have the right defenders and raiders. So, I don't think so. 

What do you have to say about the new teams emerging and giving players a tough fight?

Somebody will come today or tomorrow. Reaching the top and staying there for so long only Patna Pirates could do it. It's not so easy, but we have always been doing it. So sometimes let other players, unki bhi tho kismat chamkegi. they would also do very well. So we should not expect and put too much pressure to maintain the lead. We should not question ke final mein aake kaise haar gaye? Final mein aaye hai vo to dekho.

That's very important and others are also working very hard, doosre teams bhi bahut mehnat kar rahi hai tho unke haath bhi kuch lagna chahiye na. Mere nazar mein, whoever plays well should win. This is the aim. Yahaan India-Pakistan jaise deshvadi ladaiya nahi ho sakti, ye ek sport hai. Jo bhi accha khelega uska haq hai jeetna.

We need to start Kabaddi training at the grassroot level, right?

I think that at every grassroot level, every game should be promoted. Many schools in Patna have kabaddi. Other games like Kho-kho, pittu and langdi, all these games should be played. I think helping players financially though agencies, corporates and this and that coming up. If there are only 10 games promoted in the country at that level, they will be into 10 times more agency more corporate more jobs more, more sportspeople getting more creative, I think 10 times jobs will be created. 

On India's population to be used for sports?

1.3 billion people mein sirf cricket nahi khela ja sakta na. Jaise cricket ko itna bhadava diya jata hai aur players ko jobs, agencies and corporates support hota hai, unke paas hazaar cheezein hoti hai. Agar 10 games ko aise hi promote kiya jaye to 10 guna jobs create ho jayenge. Itne saare billions of people should play all kinds of sports. I think that is how we have to see it. Need to utilize population to our advantage. We have to do it, we don't have any other option. We have to find positivity in all these things.

Patna Pirates will next face U Mumba on 16 August at EKA Arena in Ahmedabad, Gujarat.