It received’t be an exaggeration to name Anustup Majumdar the ‘Feluda’ of Bengal cricket. The 38-year-old, who’s a die-hard fan of the tremendous sleuth, bears a hanging resemblance to the person in the case of his angle on and off the sphere.
He loves adventures, exploring the world, classical music, and naturally, cricket – which during the last twenty years has been his ardour and career.
Majumdar’s love affair with Feluda and his creator Satyajit Ray began when his father launched him to ‘ Sonar Kella’, ‘Joy Baba Felunath’ and ‘ Joto Kando Kathmandutey’ in his childhood days. Back in these days, when the Internet was principally unprecedented, Majumdar’s world would revolve round Ray’s classical works. Detective tales would hold him busy most afternoons.
And, they are saying, previous habits die arduous. Even after so a few years, you’d discover previous books of Feluda and Ray in his suitcase as Majumdar – who goes by the nickname ‘Ruku’ (by the way the character performed by then youngster actor Jit Bose in ‘Joy Baba Felunath’ )– travels across the nation with the Bengal staff through the Ranji Trophy.
“I have requested a close friend, who knows the Ray family well, to take me to his Bishop Lefroy Road residence once the domestic season is over. It has been a childhood dream to visit Ray’s residence and I want to fulfil that dream,” Majumdar tells Sportstar.
Of course, earlier than he fulfills his childhood dream, Majumdar additionally hopes to tick one other field – win a Ranji Trophy for Bengal. “That’s the only inspiration I have now. I am 38, and I know that I won’t make it to the Indian team, nor would I bag an IPL contract, but even then, I continue playing the sport because I want to win a Ranji Trophy title for Bengal. That’s what keeps me going,” he says.
Season after season, he has bailed Bengal out from powerful spots. And this 12 months, too, issues have been no completely different. After having began his Ranji Trophy marketing campaign with scores of 1 and 83 towards Uttar Pradesh, Majumdar has now raised expectations with a 159 towards Himachal Pradesh, adopted by a 90 towards Baroda. A few days in the past, he even got here up with a fantastic 145 as Bengal defeated Haryana by an innings and 50 runs to guarantee itself of a berth within the knockouts.
Over the previous couple of years, Majumdar has been so constant that it has made a number of locals give you a catchy chant – “ Sheet grishsho bawrsha, Anustup e bhawrsha…” And Majumdar himself has come throughout such posts on social media, which mainly refers to him as the person of all seasons.
“I have seen a few of those posts, and they are funny,” he says with a smile. “I love taking challenges. I somehow get that kick when the scoreboard reads, say 40 for 5, and I know that I need to go out and hang in there. I look for such moments.”
“I love adventure sports, and enjoy trekking. I want to do a lot of adventures and I think when I am on the field, I draw inspiration from all that. When I visualise a match situation, I believe I would need to rescue the team in a tough situation and I think that has helped me immensely over the years,” Majumdar says.
The right-handed batter had began his journey in 2004, and regardless of ups and downs, he made his presence felt within the IPL as effectively, that includes for Pune Warriors. Those moments had been shortlived, however within the 2019-20 season, he was again within the limelight for the 2 essential lots of that took Bengal to its first Ranji ultimate in 13 years, earlier than the aspect misplaced to Saurashtra within the summit conflict.
“I believe that most of my successful knocks have come after I was 33. If you look at my career before that, you would find that I failed on most occasions. But with age came maturity. Now, the fear of failure does not affect me. When I was young, I would often be afraid of failure, but I think I have passed that time,” he says.
From 2014-15 to 2015-16, Majumdar needed to play for Railways as a result of he had a job to maintain. Although alternatives hardly got here his approach, he hung in there for a safe future. However, in 2015-16, he obtained a ‘No Objection Certificate’ from Railways and was again to Bengal once more. But by the tip of the 2017-18 season, Railways referred to as him again and that’s when he had to decide on between a safe job and taking part in for his house State.
Majumdar, a die-hard Christopher Nolan fan, selected the latter. Quitting a job at that age wasn’t simple. But with the assistance of his spouse Sonali – an IT skilled – Majumdar may observe his goals.
As he appears to be like again at these days, Majumdar believes that fatherhood has modified him, making him extra disciplined. He has an eight-year-old son Richik – a third-standard scholar on the MP Birla Foundation School in Kolkata. “I have a family to run and have loads of responsibility. And I think that responsibility has helped me play good cricket. I am not sure if one can relate to it, but that responsibility has certainly helped me a lot in life,” he says.
Anustup Majumdar along with his son Richik.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
“It has brought discipline in my life, because I know I need to follow a timeline in terms of everything – paying my son’s school fees on time, taking him to school, or for extra-curricular activities. I was not disciplined in terms of timing even after marriage, but fatherhood has brought about a change in me.”
“You need to manage the schedule well and bring out time for training, gym, and other things, without affecting other family commitments. Those things actually helped me a lot,” he provides.
He begins his day early by dropping off Richik to high school and through pre-season, makes it some extent to search out a while for coaching. “I am not someone who is involved in rigorous training. But over the last few years, I have been able to streamline the process. Especially in the off-season, I make it a point to train for two hours a day for five days. I consider that like a savings account and that’s my only investment and I know, if I can take care of my body, that investment will give me returns for the next six-seven months, once the domestic season begins.”
A practical method in direction of life and the sport has yielded outcomes, as he may overcome the challenges with out studying between the strains. “When I was in my mid-20s, I would be disappointed if I had been left out of the squad. But I have passed that age, and instead of being disappointed, I try to self-analyse in terms of ‘what went wrong?’ or ‘why am I dropped?’ I have realised that instead of blaming people, it is important to look at your own performance and work on the weak links,” he says.
Despite making his debut in 2004, Majumdar wasn’t a part of the 2 Ranji Trophy finals that Bengal performed in 2006 and 2007. His solely look within the ultimate got here in 2020 towards Saurashtra. But this time, below Manoj Tiwary’s captaincy and Laxmi Ratan Shukla’s teaching, Bengal has proven guarantees of ending the title jinx. And, Majumdar, too, desires to make a contribution.
“For us, donning the Bengal jersey is a matter of pride and as seniors, we are aware of our responsibilities. In crunch times, the team obviously expects the seniors to step up and take the onus. Obviously, we rely a lot on the younger players, but it is also important that the senior players should rise to the occasion and guide the team in difficult times. That’s the conversation we normally have in the dressing room,” he reveals.
It is that this self-belief and confidence that helped Bengal edge previous Uttar Pradesh, Baroda and Haryana within the group league fixtures. In Lahli, a few days in the past, Majumdar did really feel a bit low after lacking out on a 150 by simply 5 runs, however he has realized to know the larger image.
“I have learned to balance out things,” he says, including with a smile, “But my son, who I call Pope, has huge expectations from me. At times, he gets disappointed if I miss out on a century or fail to convert starts. He makes it a point to call me up wherever I am, and makes his point clear. These little things keep me going.” In flip, Majumdar’s indomitable spirit and never-say-die angle that retains Bengal going, season after season.