Rakesh Oram plays for Mumbai City FC, but he’s putting Odisha on the Indian football map

On Friday evening, when Rakesh Oram, a 19-year old Indian winger made his debut for Mumbai City FC in the Indian Super League, it finally brought to the fore, a silent footballing revolution that has been taking place in an eastern Indian state since the start of this decade. Oram’s emergence is a testament to the incredible progress that Odisha have made in the sport, despite having little legacy to boast of.

A small but proud legacy

Till date, only two footballers from the state have represented India in international matches. Abdul M Bachan, the best ever footballer of the region was part of the goal-medal winning Indian squad in the 1951 Asian Games – the first major win for the national team post independence. Almost half a decade later, midfielder Rajendra Prasad Singh became a part of the squad and toured England in 2002 when India played against Jamaica. He was also part of the Mohun Bagan side that won the National Football League (now known as the I-League) in 2002, before playing for Mahindra United and Hindustan Aeronautics Limited. In recent years, SK Mustakim emerged as a promising young striker in the Tata Football Academy, but while his batchmates Robin Singh, Raju Gaikwad and Milan Singh have all made names for themselves, the Oriya forward had to be content with his job in the Railways.

“Exposure has always been a big problem for our boys. Since we have never had any I-League club here, the rest of India is not aware of the talent that our players have. However, we are focusing on the grassroots program with all our resources,” Avijit Paul, a senior official representing Football Association of Odisha, told Scroll.in.

The grassroots pay benefits

When the state made it to the 34th National Sub-Junior Football Championship in 2012, the football fraternity had to wake up and take note. The state government has played a pivotal role in the development and the 15 government hostels spread across the state host young boys who dream of becoming professional footballers. Last year, the All Indian Football Federation awarded them for the “Best Grassroots Development Programme” and this April, they went all the way to the final in the Sub-Junior Championship before going down 1-0 to a mighty Bengal side.

The state's girls have also made their mark and Odisha has had a long list of footballers who have represented the women’s national team. In October 2015, they finished runners-up in the Junior National Football Championship. The current senior team, as well as the underage teams, has representatives from the state. The qualifying round for the first ever edition of Women’s I-League is being held at Cuttack and Rising Student FC, the local team started their campaign with a 13-0 win against Royal Wahingdoh. Paul, however, gives full credit to the state government and states that the AIFF did not have a big contribution in the saga.

“Ask any state football association and they all have the same story. AIFF doesn’t have the capacity to help us. We are looking out for sponsors ourselves. If we can get someone to finance these young boys, they can focus more on the game,” he remarked.

While the stress on grassroots activities has yielded almost immediate results, the officials are now in desperate search of a hero who can help the game grow.

Can Oram be that hero?

Hailing from Chituapara in Jharsuguda, Oram has grabbed the limelight ever since he was included in the sub-junior team. Gopal Oram, his father who works as a supervisor in a local beedi company, wants his son to become a household name among Indian football fans. He was spotted by AIFF scouts when he was only 15 and was admitted to the AIFF Elite Academy.

“It would be unfair to compare the talents of such young boys but Rakesh definitely was one of the brightest wingers I have seen. His success shows what we can achieve if boys from remote areas are given proper facilities and top-class training,” Goutam Ghosh, former coach of the Under-16 India national team, opined.

Many of Rakesh’s batch-mates at the Elite Academy are already well-known in the national arena. Nishu Kumar, Daniel Lalhimpuia, Malsawmzuala and Gursimrat Singh have all been signed by Bengaluru FC, Robinson Singh has joined Mohun Bagan, Bidyananda Singh is part of Atletico de Kolkata while Milan Basumantary plays for Shillong Lajong. Oram was part of DSK Shivajians during the last I-League season and had already played a match in the Cuttack league this summer before Mumbai came calling.

Odisha’s recent progress has tempted commentators to draw comparisons with Mizoram, another state that has become a footballing force within a decade after largely being an unknown entity. Shylo Malsawmtluanga first made it to the highest echelon of Indian football in 2002 which kick-started a trend of quality Mizo footballers making it to top-flight teams.

“Rakesh can be our Shylo,” an Odisha official remarked. “We hope he will make it big and then the clubs will understand the amount of talent we have here. But to be frank, we think Bekey Oram, Rakesh’s younger brother, is even more talented. He can be our Jeje [Lalpekhlua] then,” he joked.

A state bereft of any sporting heroes for quite some time is now looking up to this teenage winger. For Indian football fans, it is good news that the net has been cast wide enough to give Rakesh Oram a platform.