CAPTAIN STYLISH
AUSTRALIAN CRICKET CAPTAIN AND RISING PUNE SUPERGIANT SKIPPER STEVE SMITH TOGS UP IN CLOTHES BY INDIA’S YOUNGEST MENSWEAR DESIGNERS
A few hours before the interview and shoot with cricketer Steve Smith, I’m worried. I’m not a cricket fan – I hope I don’t get lynched for saying that – and the interview I’ve watched of the Australian cricket captain Steve Smith with a senior journalist on TV, is discouraging. Sample this:
“What advice do you have for Virat Kohli?”
Steve Smith: “I have no advice for him.”
“How would this Indian team do if it came to play in Australia?”
Steve Smith: “It’s hard to say, really…”
As a result, the half an hour interview now clocks at 12 minutes, 25 seconds on YouTube.
Our plan is to get Steve Smith to talk about his time in India; the joys and challenges of playing for the IPL and living and travelling through this diverse country of ours. How do players from other parts of the world feel when they must pledge their allegiance to a region of India…of this vast country that we Indians don’t know everything about? And, how do they enjoy living in a country like ours? We’re not a sports magazine, so we aren’t looking for statistics and trade techniques. We want Steve Smith to open up about representing an Indian side at the IPL. Smith led the Rising Pune Supergiant to a great final this season, losing to the Mumbai Indians by just one run! We want him to talk India: the young, talented Aussie’s discovery of the country and its culture, about the foods he likes, the cities he wants to visit, the girls he has encountered. We also have a bag full of trendy clothes by India’s youngest menswear designers that we needed Steve to model in front of the camera.
But how does one break a sportsman’s defence of giving clipped answers when handed a microphone?
Fortunately, we stumble upon a picture put up on Instagram by Indian Test Cricket vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane. The photo shows Steve dressed in traditional Maratha attire, complete with a dhotar (dhoti) and pheta (turban). It is captioned: “What do you think of @stevesmith49’s new Puneri avatar? We are loving it!”
Then things get better. A video of Steve Smith mouthing Marathi lays the rest of our fears to rest. “C’mon Punekars,” he says. “Aaplya team la support kara!” (Translated: C’mon Punekars, let’s support our team!) We know what will move our man.
INDIA ON HIS PLATE
On the day of the shoot at the ITC Maurya in New Delhi, Steve arrives on time and behaves like any 27-year-old will. The standoffishness of the TV interview is nowhere in sight. To set the mood, we begin with the Maratha outfit. Steve warms up instantly: “Oh yes, it was very colourful, wasn’t it?” He laughs, almost shy. “Definitely a lot of variety in terms of style and patterns. Ajinkya is a friend and a proud Maharashtrian, who loves his Marathi attire. It was a memorable moment for me to wear that outfit.”
An Aussie who can pronounce the word ‘Maharashtrian’ and use Marathi in the same sentence can win any Mumbaikar’s heart in an instant. Steve has just done that.
As a nonIndian, what’s it like living in India for months together? I ask. India can be an overwhelming place; how does a sportsman get used to it all? “I love India, and I really enjoy being here for long periods while playing,” Steve begins, a bit press release-ish in his answer. “We come so often, it has almost become my home away from home. I even have favourite restaurants. The food’s a bit spicy for me, but I can certainly make out the difference between North Indian cuisine and a South Indian preparation. Outside, the temperature takes a toll on you, but the warmth of the people makes up for that.”
Steve recalls the first time he came to India. “I honestly didn’t know what to expect. But the passion people have for the game of cricket makes it so enjoyable for a professional cricketer to be here. If asked to pick one thing I love about Indians, it’d have to be their enthusiasm for everything: cricket, movies and life in general. If I have friends visiting, I’d like to take them to a cricket match… you can’t see India through my eyes without experiencing the crowds and noise at a game. I’d also take them to Dharamsala, which is so picturesque…”
PUNERI PRIDE
Suddenly, Steve Smith does a double take. He has named Dharamsala, but this year, he’s brand ambassador for Pune. Quick on the uptake, he adds: “Dharamsala is beautiful, but I must be politically correct, and being a Rising Pune Supergiant, say Pune’s my favourite city in India!” But that’s not the only reason. “Honestly, my second innings 100 in Pune recently is something I rate as one of my best ever… and us going on to win that test match was fantastic!”
Steve then gives us a few words he’s picked up in Hindi (see box), regrets he hasn’t watched a complete
“INDIA IS MY HOME AWAY FROM HOME. I EVEN HAVE FAVOURITE RESTAURANTS... AND CAN TELL THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN NORTH INDIAN CUISINE AND A SOUTH INDIAN PREPARATION.”
Bollywood movie yet, and confesses that shopping in India is something he knows little about… “My partner Dani (Danielle Willis) is usually over here with me, so I don’t usually have to buy gifts to take home. She really loves the shopping here, especially in Mumbai.”
All the banter has adequately readied the cricketing superstar for the photo shoot, and we think it’s time to bring out the clothes. Steve slips into them with ease, doesn’t smile unless prodded to, but looks stylish without much effort.
The TV host had referred to Steve Smith as a difficult man to “get out”, on the field and during an interview on camera. For the morning he spends with us though, Steve Smith proves to be a clotheshorse and shows how, if not a cricketer, he could well have been a fashion model!
“YOU CAN’T SEE INDIA THROUGH MY EYES WITHOUT EXPERIENCING THE CROWDS AND NOISE AT A CRICKET GAME”