How Ashok Vahie Has Been Capturing Indian Hockey Memories through his Lenses Across Decades
He has been a familiar face in and around the hockey pitches in Delhi be it on the sidelines of the hockey turf or in the stands religiously capturing Indian hockey moments through his lenses. Ashok Vahie has indeed carved out a big reputation as a hockey photojournalist, capturing some of the exciting moments of Indian hockey across five decades.
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Affectionately called Vahiesahab, he initiated his journey as a hockey photojournalist in 1970 covering the Jawaharlal Nehru Hockey Tournament that was played on grass at the Shivaji Stadium. The ace hockey photojournalist’s unbridled passion for clicking hockey photos saw him cover every major national or international hockey tournaments across decades, never missing out on letting his ‘lenses do the talk’ whenever hockey matches are held in and around New Delhi. He was actively covering hockey through his lenses until 2015 with the Senior Nehru Hockey Tournament being his swansong.
Over a period of close to five decades, Vahie has covered a plethora of hockey events held in Delhi – the most prominent being the 1982 New Delhi Asian Games, 1989 Men’s Asia Cup, Indira Gandhi Gold Cup (multiple editions), 1999 & 2004 Women’s Asia Cups, several bilateral Test matches, 2010 Commonwealth Games besides the Senior Nehru Hockey Tournament. There was a couple of occasions when Vahie covered hockey matches outside Delhi as well – he travelled to Karachi to cover the 1980 Champions Trophy as well as the 1982 Bombay World Cup. “I have fond memories of travelling to Karachi and still remember Pakistan won the 1980 Champions Trophy. I also have cherished memories of covering the Bombay World Cup, where Rajinder Singh emerged as the top goal-scorer,” says Vahie in a freewheeling chat with Hockey Passion.
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Vahie also undertook a trip to Bombay (now Mumbai) to shoot the 1975 Indian World Cup-winning team vs Cine Stars match staged at the Wankhede stadium before a sell-out crowd.
The 80-year-old hockey photojournalist has exuded an unflinching commitment to clicking hockey photos that have endeared him towards the players, coaches, officials across decades. Players across decades adore him, respect him and truly understand the value and contributions he made for the sport of hockey. “I retired from covering hockey after the advent of Covid-19 in 2020 but I’ have been able to make a lot of friends among players over time which is hugely satisfying. I’m in touch with over hundred-plus former international and domestic players and the ‘Good Morning’ WhatsApp messages from many of them at regular intervals keeps me going,” he says with a glint of pride.
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His rapport with the players can be gauged from the fact that former Indian centre-forward and stalwart BP Govinda made it a point to ensure Vahie travelled to Bengaluru to click his marriage photos. He was not the only one – former Indian men team forwards Ashok Kumar and Zafar Iqbal also invited Vahie to cover their marriages through his lenses. “I don’t recall the year but I went to Bangalore (Bengaluru now) for the marriage of BP Govinda,” he says.
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Vahie’s contributions to hockey can only understand by folks who closely track Indian hockey – it is unfortunate that he hasn’t quite received the recognition he deserved but it’s not something that bothers him – he has always let his passion – clicking hockey moments to do the talking. “During my heydays sports coverage in media was all about cricket and very less of hockey. I got my government media accreditation in 1979 and since then I have been supplying hockey photos to more than twenty media publications at one point of time,” he grins.
To put it a nutshell, it is hard to imagine any kind of storytelling on Indian hockey in the seventies, eighties, and nineties sans the moments captured by Ashok Vahie. The veteran hockey photojournalist, who considers Sukhvir Singh Grewal, Arvind Chhabra, Ashok Kumar, BP Govinda among his closet friends, has given so much to Indian hockey through his ‘hockey clicks’.
Surely, he is one of the unsung heroes of Indian hockey!
Image Credit: Ashok Vahie
