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After Shah Rukh Khan and his girl gang hit the cinema halls, demand for hockey equipment had gone up.
Shah Rukh Khan's sports drama Chak De! India hit theatres 14 years ago. The 2002 victory of the Indian women's field hockey team in the commonwealth games inspired the film. The film also addressed themes such as feminism, sexism and the legacy of partition of India, racism and religious bigotry, ethnic and regional prejudice, and racial/religious bigotry. Keep reading for Bollywood News.
It not only won an amazing box office feat, but it also changed the way youth view hockey sticks. The film did the impossible, but not many people know this. Reportedly, when the film was released on August 10 in a span of two weeks hockey sticks have outsold cricket bats.
Demand for hockey equipment has increased since Shah Rukh Khan's girl gang entered the cinema halls. Many first-time buyers were, in fact, girls. According to The Telegraph, Harish Sachdev (Director of Bodyline Sports West Bengal), said that "We have sold approximately 30 hockey sticks in ten days." Only 20 cricket bats were sold during the same time period. Many children came to our shop to purchase a hockey stick on the day that the film was released. We have seen both teenagers and seniors purchase the equipment in the last few days."
According to the report, most hockey sticks were sold in the Rs 150-450 range. GK Sports saw similar sales after Chak De! India was finally released. GK Sports witnessed a 30 percent increase in sales of hockey sticks during that time.
"The boost in sales can surely be attributed to the film. Adeep Kapoor, a partner, said that some buyers were genuine interested in the sport.
Although Shah Rukh Khan's movie did bring attention to hockey, many people believed that West Bengal's infrastructure was not up-to-standard. Shakuntala Shaw, a 16-year-old Behala girl, stated to the publication that "The movie has inspired and created awareness about women’s hockey." The infrastructure is so poor that the game is in jeopardy.
Stay tuned at Koimoi for more updates.
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