The Other Padukone

A pioneer and a player Prakash Padukone achieved many firsts in Badminton. Putting India on the world map, he paved the path for its shining future.

Putting India into the world stage with his racquet; Source: The Bridge

A game that requires tremendous stamina. An arena partitioned into two. Two players emerge with a racquet in their hands. After a few minutes of pause as the referee makes his signal, they start tossing the shuttle. Not a second of respite, the battle of wills and skills continues for some time. Only one emerges as the winner and the other goes to go home. Badminton, which was originally invented in India in 1970 is a sport that requires meticulous practice as well as the immediate presence of mind. Pioneering the same, Prakash Padukone was India’s star badminton player during the 70s and the 80s.

While most of us know him as Deepika Padukone’s father, Prakash Padukone was a man of his own making.

Born on 10th June 1955, the Bengaluru boy became the pride of the whole nation with the sheer brilliance of his performance. While today we have Saina Nehwal, P.V. Sindhu, and Srikanth Kidambi, the earlier decades had their Padukone whose contributions to the sport helped popularize it to its current form.

Prakash’s tryst with badminton was destined to happen as his father was the secretary of the Mysore badminton association. It was a match made in heaven when Prakash discovered his own skills at the game. A peculiar start, it would be the large halls of a wedding venue where Ramesh would take his son to watch state players practice. The young Prakash would watch astutely and soon develop an interest in the shuttle game. Soon, he would himself take up the racquet and toss the shuttle-cork fiercely against the opponent. The racquet became his weapon and he became its master.

A career in Badminton was soon in the making. It was the Karnataka state junior championship of 1962 that the young Prakash would open his game with. It won't be a bed of roses as he would lose his very first rounds. But a comeback two years later would prove his budding talent as he would go on to bag the state junior title.

As time would progress, Prakash would become more mature with his style of playing. Taking an aggressive stance, the opponents would be left gasping for breath. A feat, he also achieved the National Junior title in 1972.

Prakash’s name would spread far and wide and recognition would start to arrive. The whole world witnessed the spectacle of a player as he went on to win a gold medal at the 1978 Commonwealth Games. The very next year, another title would be in waiting as the badminton player won the Evening of Champions in London’s prestigious Royal Albert Hall. No mean feat, Prakash Padukone was also the first Indian to win the All England Championship’s men’s singles title.

An achiever and a pioneer, players like Prakash Padukone are seldom born today. If destiny would have allowed, India could have had an Olympic medal due to this legend. However, due to a twist of fate, he took retirement in 1991 and it was only in 1992 that badminton became a recognised sport in the Olympics. Despite everything, he remains as a testimony to the evolving years of the game. Conferred with an Arjuna Award, a Padma Sri, and a Lifetime Achievement Award, he has always maintained that it was only his passion and not the lure of a medal that led him to play.

Even though he retired in the 1990s, his association with the sport has been for a lifetime. From chairing the Badminton Association of India to coaching the national team, his life remains in dedication to Badminton. He has also founded the Olympic Gold Quest for the country to shine in the games. Today, the name Prakash Padukone remains an aspiration to many who want to play for their country.