IPL: Beyond the 22 yards
Lights, Camera, Action! Except this time, it isn't actors performing. IPL is about to start and cricketers from across the globe will take the center stage of the discourse in India. The who's who among cricket giants will hit boundaries, and take wickets as cities fight it out for the glory. IPL has all components required to be a hit reality show - which some would say it is. But is it more than that? I wouldn't get into the cricketing part. That has been discussed and debated much. The Puritans hate the hybrid that is IPL, and the supporters have the list of all cricketers who rose to prominence through IPL ready. What I have in mind is all the other impact IPL has. The first three matches of the previous edition of IPL reached a staggering 185.7 million viewers! [1] In 2012, when Kolkata won IPL, they were given a rousing welcome by the crowd. The euphoria in West Bengal can be gauged from the fact that even the CM couldn't afford to skip the celebratory ...