By Ashraf Padanna/Thiruvananthapuram
The 35th National Games got off to a glittering start in Kerala yesterday with a march past and a cultural extravaganza.
Sprint queen P T Usha and Anju Bobby George received from cricketing legend Sachin Tendulkar, the goodwill ambassador of the event, the torch that came from the northern city of Kasaragod covering all districts of the state and heralding the fortnight-long sporting gala.
The competitions are held at 31 venues spread across seven districts, 14 of them in the state capital, and they are seen as a preparatory exercise for next year’s Olympic Games in Rio-de-Janeiro.
Federal Minister for Urban Development Venkaiah Naidu flagged off the games at the ceremony that saw some 6,000 dancers, percussionists and entertainers performing in a brand new stadium of international standards, the first of its kind in India.
The four-hour-long ceremony also turned out to be the declaration that the state was ready to host international soccer and cricket matches with the country’s first multi-purpose greenfield stadium built according to the specifications of the International Cricket Council and FIFA.
Ahead of the ceremony, federal Sports Minister Sarbananda Sonowal, impressed by the arrangements and the excellent sports infrastructure put in place, said the government would consider Kerala as the venue for the proposed sports academy.
Chief Minister Oommen Chandy presided over the impressive function. There are some 15,000 competitors who started arriving in the city early this week.
The ceremony began with the Indian Air Force showering flowers from their helicopters followed by an army band display.
Naidu took the salute at the march-past, led by the 2011 champions. The teams appeared in alphabetical order starting with the Andamans and Nicobar Islands and concluding with the host team Kerala, all encircling the stadium and saluting him.
The placard bearer of each team in the state’s traditional costume and the captain of the respective team holding the state Olympic association flag led each contingent as live performances of traditional art forms continued.
Ammu, the mascot of the 35th edition of the Games, made her appearance after the march past and hoisting of the flag of the Indian Olympic Association with the theme song, penned by Javed Akhtar and set to tune by Hariharan, in the background.
Malayalam superstar Mohanlal took over the venue immediately after the solemn ceremony with his Lalisom music band and other cultural programmes.
Lalisom included a tribute to the Indian film industry spread across regions and languages from Alam Ara (1931). His ‘War Cry’ saw him donning the role of Kunjali Marakkar, Kerala’s maritime hero who fought the Portuguese invaders.
The show, a mix of real and graphically created images, supported by sound effects and live actions, provided a visual spectacle of simulated war scenes based on the true life of Kunjali Marakkar.
The show featured a spectacular lineup of star singers like Udit Narayan, Hariharan, Ankit Trivedi, Alka Yagnik, Bhoomi Trivedi, Karthik, M G Sreekumar, Sujatha and K S Chitra.
The state has also built the “Games Village” with 400 air-conditioned dwelling units that can accommodate 5,000 athletes and officials.
Kerala, which stood seventh last time, is fielding the biggest contingent and is taking part in the most number of events.
Goodwill ambassador Sachin Tendulkar with Ammu, the mascot of National Games.
