In August 2015, we came across one of the most inspiring videos we’d watched in quite a bit – Danny Mamik’s ” ‘Tiger Woods’ of Bengal“. It showcased the journey of a group of boys following their passion for the game of golf at the Chalsa Polo Club in West Bengal. They had no access to golf kits – they made their own from scratch using pieces of wood and sticks!
It had always been his dream to unearth sporting geniuses in India and when Danny came across this story, he knew the world had to see it. He always believed that India can be a sporting powerhouse – all we need is to streamline the system and offer a merit based platform for sports from the grassroots level.
Being the ardent sportsperson and sports aficionado that he is, Danny Mamik started a campaign to collect proper golf kits for the kids. The wide coverage that his story received, including from The Logical Indian, brought the story to the attention of golfers and sports lovers across the globe. Gary Player and Greg Norman, two legends of the game sent their best wishes. Abhishek Bachchan pushed it through his twitter feed. Six people very generously donated golfing equipment – Anitya Chand, Noni Lal Qureshi, Lee Rogers, Rosendo Guizar, Paul Patterson and Dave Kephart.
A small nine-year-old boy smacked a 170-yard straight drive with his new clubs. That is raw talent right there. This is an opportunity right here. The passion for the game is there. Now they have access to proper kits as well. The next need is for proper training to equip the kids for professional golf. Anitya Chand, a professional golfer and Noni Lal Quereshi have expressed the willingness to coach the kids. Danny ardently believes that provided the proper grooming, India can produce a few professional golfers of international calibre from this group of kids. However, he needs the support of the Indian Golf Union to take this further.
So, if any of you have any contacts at the Indian Golf Union, or wish to support the kids through training or golfing kits, please contact Danny Mamik at [email protected] or 9892220705.
Danny plans to travel across India between September and November of this year, bringing to us more inspirational stories of unknown sporting geniuses. The Logical Indian will be travelling with him – so stay tuned for even more inspiration!
Hats off to Danny, Hemanshu Rathod and friends for taking up this very deserving cause and executing things to perfection. Well done folks – You are the Logical Indians!
