Chetan Chauhan always embedded India in his strong heart

It is not always easy to capture the personality of someone you have seen play cricket, curate a ground, play a role in the running of the cricket association with a contrarian position to that of his erstwhile skipper and team-mates, manage the Indian squad on what became a difficult tour of Australia, give up a banking career to be a politician – and, take his pet out for a morning walk.

Chetandra Pratap Singh Chauhan – or Chetan Chauhan, as he was popularly known – wore his different hats with aplomb, with pride that swelled his heart. To hear of his passing owing to multi-organ failure perhaps caused by COVID-19 on Sunday caused the heart to sink. For, if anything, he was a hardcore fighter, strong-willed and unflinching in the face of challenges life had for him.

To be sure, there are many who have known him better than me, some have watched him bat from 20 yards away, others have seen him take catches off their bowling, some have interacted with him when he was at the helm of affairs in the Delhi and District Cricket Association or as a Cabinet Minister in Uttar Pradesh.

And, each of them will paint a wonderful picture of the man etched in their mind’s eye.

I shall focus on two aspects of the man who was always smartly turned out that strike me. The first is his role on the opening partnership with the legendary Sunil Gavaskar. Chauhan himself believed – and with good reason – that during his tenure as a reliable and consistent batsman along with Gavaskar, he showed that Indians could play the quick bowlers with control and confidence.

“Together, we changed the perception that India did not have a pair of openers that was strong and complemented one another. Between 1977 and 1981, we did not lose too many Tests, bailing India out of trouble on many occasions. Of course, I was overshadowed by Gavaskar’s strong presence. I guess my contribution to Indian cricket was recognised after I had called it a day,” he told me.

There is no doubt that nearly every eulogy will touch upon this aspect. Instead, I shall spend more time on one trait that endeared him to me. After having lived in Australia for four or five years, he returned home since he believed his destiny was linked to India. And, to say that his heart always beat for India would be an under-statement.

It will not be wrong to say that his thinking was deeply influenced by his father, Maj. Navratan Singh, a doctor in the army. “Having worked in the British Army during World War II, he was influenced by the Western lifestyle but remained a proud Indian,” Chauhan told me about the man who was reported to have written long letters in anguish to Uttar Pradesh’s cricket officials.

“My father did not take any nonsense and was once nearly court-martialed for slapping a British officer. I can recall him being disenchanted with some of what independence got along for India. He liked the positives in the system that the British had used in India but was upset by the growing law and order problems, corruption and the disparity between the rich and the poor in free India.”

Born on July 21, 1947, in Bareily in Uttar Pradesh just three weeks before India secured Independence, Chauhan had mixed feelings each time he was reminded that he was born only a few days before India became independent. As icy irony would have it, death claimed Chauhan a day after India celebrated its 74th Independence Day.

He did not think he was let down and that India had given him all he needed.  “I do get disturbed when I see the poor and the down-trodden or when I see that the problems of the lower middle-class are not addressed,” the two-time Member of Parliament told me when I was writing a piece on those born in the year of India’s independence.

As luck would have it, this conversation took place when he was walking his pet dog near his home, not far from where I live. I could see the deep sense of bonding that he shared with his pet. He was shattered when he lost his teenaged son Karan to a car accident in Adelaide a couple of years earlier but showed resilience in dealing with the tragedy.

Chauhan’s faith in India and its ability to find its niche remained unshaken. “I am proud of India’s rich heritage and its society. We have a great deal of commonsense that I don’t find in many nations. We have a fountain of knowledge. We read and are curious to know more. We are patient and tolerant – perhaps we tolerate some nonsense as well,” he said, listing the positives.

“We can do without politics in our offices, cricket and society. I want us to progress and I dislike anyone rubbishing us as a nation. I would like to see it become a good nation, a great destination and make a place for itself on the world stage,” he said. Chetandra Pratap Singh Chauhan, him of steadfast beliefs, upright nature and forthright views, will be missed.