Of Rolling Stones,cricket & the ‘write’ cause

In conversation with  cricketer-turned- businessman  Dilip Doshi

When he brought the legends of rock & roll - the Rolling Stones - to India four years ago, his fan base probably tripled! So, then, the first obvious question to London-based Dilip Doshi is - how about an encore?

“Definitely! With a little bit of luck, we’ll get the band to play again early next year, maybe in January. We’re trying to get them to tour three or four cities India. Mick (Jagger, the band’s frontman) really loves our country,” says  the fan and close friend of the band.

However, the cricketer-turned-businessman is currently more focused on the task at hand - ‘the Right to Write’, an initiative by Mont Blanc (which has been brought down to India by his company Entrack that markets luxury brands world over) and the Indian Red Cross Society.

Entrack will basically donate Rs 1000 against the sale of each Meisterstuck writing instrument, which will be used to educate poor children here.

“I’ve always wanted to give back to my country. I am also a great believer in education and since underprivileged kids are in more ways than one the future of our country, providing them with this right is very satisfying to me,” says the dapper businessman.

His patriotism is evident as he says, “I’m mentally always in India. I really miss the people…everything. I come here six-eight times a year. Of course, after 21 years of living there, London is home away from home. People there are very cultured.

Ask him why he turned to business and not cricket commentary like most of his peers and he explains, “When you play cricket you get totally consumed by it, but in reality it is just a small part of your life. Yes, I was offered a commentary stint by BBC, but I really didn’t want to stay in that small world. There are other challenges in life.”

Of course, he still avidly watches cricket when India is playing. So it would be criminal not to ask him the question on everyone’s mind - who should be the Indian cricket captain?

Without hesitating, the former spin bowler says, “MS Dhoni and this has nothing to do with his performance in the 20-20 matches  being played in South Africa. It’s important to believe in somebody and the youngsters have paid rich dividends.”

Ask him why not strong contender Sachin Tendulkar and he reasons, “I have tremendous respect for Sachin; he is such an inspiration for young players. He is almost selfless and India needs him for as long as possible as a batsman. We need him to be around to guide young players too. Captaincy may restrict his game, which is why we shouldn’t burden him with it.”

As far as the recent war of words between his peers Sunil Gavaskar and Kapil Dev are concerned, Doshi says, “We Indians have the habit of washing our dirty linen in public. I guess, it’s up to the media not to entertain such sensationalism.”

On the personal front, the businessman is certainly one proud papa. Both his kids have followed in his footsteps - his son Nayan is a spinner like he was and his daughter Vishaka works with him at Entrack.

“As long as they are enjoying what they are doing, I’m happy.”

Finally, for the cynics who may criticise ‘the Right to Write’ as a marketing ploy, he has this to say, “Look, I’m no philanthropist sitting on a pot of money. I’m here to earn a living and ensure the same for my team members."

"We are only talking about giving from what we  get. However, to kickstart the project, we have already donated Rs 11 lakh. We are dedicated to the cause and we are contributing as much as we can from our end.”

g_sheree@dnaindia.net