Chak de chak de ek hockey doongee rakh ke
Posted on: March 16, 2025
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This date 50 years ago (15 March 1975- 15 March 2025)
Today is 15 March 2025. It means that the date 50 years ago was 15 March 1975.
If one asked me what I was doing on 15 march 1975, I would have drawn a blank. But if someone informed me what major event took place on 15 march 1975 then I would be able to tell what I was doing that day.
I came to know through some online articles that 15 march 1975 was the date when India won the final of World cup Hockey and became world cup champion for the first (and till now only) time.
When I was reminded of this fact, memories of those days 50 years ago came back to me as if in flashback. During the year 1975, I was 12 years old and I was in class nine. It was the third world cup hockey tournament and it was held in Kualalumpur, Malayasia. It was the last major hockey tournament that was held on natural grass surface. After that all hockey tournaments began to be played on synthetic surface called Astroturf. Rules of hockey were changed drastically. All these rule changes made hockey less a game of artistry and flair and more a game of strength, endurance and routine procedures.
First two world cups were held in Spain and Netherlands. India had won bronze in the first world cup (Pakistan won that tournament). India was the runners up in the second world cup in 1973 . Hosts Netherlands had won the title.
The third world cup at Kualalumpur was played on the natural surface that allowed Asian teams the ability to show their skills. The ten participating teams were accomodated in two groups of six teams each. Group A had Pakistan, Malayasia, Netherlands, Poland,Spain and New Zealand. Group B had India, West Germany, Argentina, England, Australia and Ghana. Top two teams from the two groups qualified for the semi finals. Number one team of one group played number 2 team of the other group in the semi finals. The winners of the two semifinals then played the final.
Pakistan had topped group A. Malayasia, the host nation, aided by their partisan home crowd played out of their skin and finished second ahead of strong teams. Previous world cup champion Netherlands could only finish last in that group. In group B, India and West Germany finished on equal number of points but India came first because India had defeated West Germany in their head to head encounter.
Indian semifinal was against the home team Malayasia. It was the toughest match that India faced. House full 50000 capacity Merdeka Stadium of Kualalumpur was vociferous in the support of home team. Malayasia took the lead on the 33rd minute just before half time through Poon Fook Loke. Just after half time, India equalised through Shivajirao Pawar in the 40th minute. Indian relief was shortlived because just two minutes later Shanmugnathan of Malayasia put Malayasia ahead again on the 42nd minute. India had 28 minutes of time left to try and equalise. India forwards kept attacking and kept getting penalty corners after penalty corners. Full back Surjeet Singh was the designated penalty corner expert, and he kept missing the target. Just a few minutes were left for the final whistle. In a desperate attempt, the manager Balbir Singh (sr) and coach (Gurcharan Singh Bodhi) made a substitution. Full back Michael Kindo was withdrawn and he was replaced by Aslam Sher Khan.
When India got another penalty corner, just three minutes were left for the final whistle. This was the last chance for India to equalise. Captain Ajitpal Singh asked Aslam Sher Khan to take the penalty corner. B P Govinda pushed the ball, Ajitpal Singh stopped it cleanly, Aslam Sher Khan, just as he was about to take the hit, noticed that the Malayasian goalkeeper was diving towards his left side. He pushed the ball towards his right side and India had got the much needed equaliser. The full time ended 2-2. 15 minutes extra time was given. In the ninth minute of extra time, Harcharan Singh was able to score a field goal. India held on this lead and won the hard fought semifinal 3-2 and advanced to the final.
Pakistan had already qualified for the final the previous day (13 march 1975) when they thrashed West Germany 5-1 in an one sided match. In comparison, India had defeated West Germany 3-1 in their group match. Pakistan too had found Malayasia a tough nut to crack in their group A match, where Pakistan had won by a narrow margin of 2-1.
Final match was in Merdeka Stadium of Kualalumpur on 15 March 1975 at 15:00 Malayasian time viz 12:30 IST.
I clearly remember the day being saturday. My school time was 10 AM to 4 PM from Monday till friday whereas we had half day on saturday when our classes were upto 2 PM. So the match had started when my classes were still going on. Radio was the only way in which one could follow the match. Akashwani (All India Radio) had sent their commentators to give live commentary of the matches. The commentary would be alternatively in Hindi and English. I have no recollection who the English commentator was, but the Hindi commentator was Jasdev Singh. He was to Hindi sports commentary what Amin Sayani was to HFM announcement. Listening to his commentary of hockey matches would send our pulses racing.
I vaguely recollect that some teachers were following the commentary on transistor radio. The school kids were no privy to that. I am unable to recollect if some enterprising school kids had brought their pocket transisor that would get used when there were no teachers in the class. We did somehow gather that Pakistan had scored a goal and was leading. When it was 2 PM and the final bell rang announcing chhutti, the school kids started leaving the school premises. At that time sportsloving kids among us had more access to radio commentary. We came to know that India had managed to equalise.
My school was located one km north of Ranchi Railway station. My residence was one KM south of Ranchi Railway station. So I crossed the Railway station while going from Home to school and vice versa. There were typically two routes for me. One route was via Railway sports ground and other route was via Railway Mail Service building. I clearly recall that I had chosen the route of Railway Mail Service. It was while I approached that Railway Mail Service Building when the excited voice of Jasdev Singh coming through radio sets informed us that India had scored another goal. There were still nearly 20 minutes to go. Going from there to my residence took not more than 10 minutes. The match was still on when I got back home. The commentary of Jasdev Singh was giving us anxious moments as Pakistani forwards were all over Indian goal.
After surviving anxious moments, during which India goalkeeper Leslie Fernandez made a desperate save, India survived the scare and managed to win the match.
With this hard fought victory, India became Hockey world champion for the first and last time. Subsequently Indian hockey fell into very bad days. India failed to even qualify for semi finals in the subsequent world cups. Same fate awaited India in Olympics Hockey (except in 1980 when India won gold in a competition that was badly depleted because of USA led boycott of Western nations) for next four decades.
Who were the heroes that provided us the memorable day on 15 March 1975 ? Here is the list of the Hockey stars of that team:-
| Name of player | DoB | DoD | Position | Natioanl awards | International medals | Remarks | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ajitpal Singh (captain) | 1 april 1947 | Half Back | Arjun Award (1970)Padma Shree (1992) | World cup champion (1975), World cup silver (1973), world cup bronze (1971),Olympic bronze medals (1968, 1972) Asian Games silver (1970, 1974) | |||
| Ashok Kumar | 1 june 1950 | Centre forward | Arjun Award (1974) | World cup champion (1975), World cup silver (1973), world cup bronze (1971),Olympics bronze (1972), Asian games silver (1970, 1974, 1978) | Scored match winning goal in final of 1975 world cup. Son of legendary hockey player Major Dhyanchand | ||
| Leslie Fernandez | Goalkeeper | World cup champion (1975) | First choice goalkeeper in 1975 World cup | ||||
| Ashok Dewan | 9 August 1954 | Goalkeeper | World cup champion (1975), Olympics gold (1980) | Reserve goalkeeper in 1975 World cup | |||
| Surjit Singh | 10 October 1951 | 6 January 1984 | Full Back | Arjun Award (1998)(posthumous) | World cup champion (1975), World cup silver (1973),Olympic bronze (1972), Asian games silver (1974, 1978) | Scored first goal (equaliser)for India in 1975 World cup. Died in a road accident in 1984 | |
| Michael Kindo | 28 june 1946 | 31 December 2020 | Full Back | Arjun Award (1972) | World cup champion (1975), World cup silver (1973), world cup bronze (1971),Olympics bronze (1972), Asian games silver (1974) | Inspired lots of players of Orissa-Jharkhand to become international hockey players | |
| Aslam Sher Khan | 15 July 1953 | Full Back | World cup champion (1975), Olympic bronze (1972) | In 1975 world cup semi final against hosts Malayasia, India were trailing 1-2 with three minutes to go. He was brought in as substitute and was given the opportunity to take the penalty corner. He equalised for his team and India won the almost lost game in extra time. Won Lok Sabha elections in 1984 and 1991 from Betul Constituency (Madhya Pradesh).His father Ahmad Sher Kha played in 1936 Olympics team that won gold medal | |||
| Varinder Singh | 16 May 1947 | 28 june 2022 | World cup winner (1975) World cup silver (1973), Olympic bronze (1972) | ||||
| Onkar Singh | Half back | World cup winner (1975) | Younger player in the team and was in the reserves. Played only one match in the group stage against Ghana | ||||
| Mohindar Singh | 3 April 1953 | 19 September 1977 | World cup winner (1975) | Died in 1977 at a young age after brief illness | |||
| B P Govinda | 4 September 1951 | Forward | Arjun Award (1975) | World cup winner (1975), World cup runners up (1973),Olympic bronze (1972), Asian games silver (1970, 1974, 1978) | |||
| Harcharan Singh | 15 January 1950 | Forward Left flank | Arjun Award (1977), Vishisht Seva Medal (1981) | World cup winner (1975), World cup runners up (1973), World cup bronze (1971),Olympic bronze (1972), Asian games silver (1970, 1974) | In 1975 world cup semi final, he scored the winning goal in extra time to send India to the final. He joined army where he rose up to Brigadier. He is uncle of Balwinder Singh Sandhu (cricketer) | ||
| Harjinder Singh Chimni | forward | World cup winner (1975) | Rose upto Brigadier in Indian Army | ||||
| Victor John Philips | 1 september 1950 | right wing forward | World cup winner (1975), Olympic bronze (1972) | His elder brother John Peter played in three Olympics , viz 1960 (silver), 1964 (Gold) and 1968(bronze) | |||
| Victor John Philips | 1 september 1950 | right wing forward | World cup winner (1975), Olympic bronze (1972) | ||||
| Shivaji Pawar | Has expired | forward | World cup winner (1975) | Scored first equaliser for India against Malayasia in the semi final | |||
| P E Kalaiah | Left in | World cup winner (1975) |
Coach-Gurcharan Singh Bodhi
Manager– Balbir Singh (Sr)
Hindi movies have just one Hockey related movie made till date (as far as my knowledge goes). That movie is “Chak De India”(2007) of course. Three songs from this movie have been covered in the past. I was afraid that I may not have been left with any songs from this movie. But fortunately one wonderful song from the movie is still available for discussion. This song is an “introduction” song where each player gets introduced. In the last stanza, the coach gets introduced. The song is sung by KK, Shahrukh Khan and lots of females (I guess by actresses themselves on whom the song was picturised). Jaideep Sahni is the lyricist. Music is composed by Salim Sulaiman.
Song-Chak de chak de ek hockey doongee rakh ke (Chak De India)(2007) Singers-KK ,Shahrukh Khan, the hockey team,Lyrics-Jaideep Sahni, MD-Salim Sulaiman
Lyrics
this is da story of a team
and they playing
for their one and only dream
to win the world cup
so you better backup
cos they are coming on now on
they are coming on how
get out of their way cos they are screaming
chak de
chal zara zara sa
zara zara sa
zara zara sa hat ke
chal dara dara sa
dara dara sa
dara dara sa bach ke
chal zara zara sa
zara zara sa
zara zara sa hat ke
chal dara dara sa
dara dara sa
dara dara sa bach ke
ek hockey doongee main rakh ke
chak de
chak de
ek hockey doongi rakh ke
chak de
chak de
ek hockey doongee rakh ke
chak de
chak de
ek hockey doongee main rakh ke
chak two
she is new
kehte hain mem
bade teekhee iskee game
she is cool par dil ki hai fool
badee badee teamon kaa bhulaaye haal chaal
hai hai english maal
aaja preeti sabarwal
what
u have a problem with me
chak three
she thinks like a bear
gaanv ki yeh chhori khele hocke choree choree
baap bhai koi roke toh kare seenajori
dribble mein is se koi tez naheen
koi saalee ho ya saala
aa gayi bhaiya
chha gayi bhaiya
komal chautala
khelnewala khel rahega
rokne waala fail rahega
jo jyaada marode moonch
chaat le jaake bhains kee poonch
chak de chak de
ek hockey doongee rakh ke
chak de chak de
ek hockey doongee rakh ke
chak de chak de
ek hockey doongee main rakh ke
chak four
on the floor
ghisee hui hai
piya hua hai ghaat ghaat kaa paanee
sabse senior player hai na
kartee hai manmaanee
himmat aur himaakat hai
team kee hai khalnayak
apne dil mein game badal de
aaja bindiya naik
are dekhe hamne bade bade hain coach yeh angrez se
line pe inko laana hai saam daam dand bhed se
chak five
give me the eye
captain hai aur goalie bhee
par ghar kaa gol khaalee hai
ek taraf hai ball aur stick
doojee taraf khushhaale hai
shaadi mushkil game hai
par player haar kab maane hai
vidya sharma india captain
iske bhee kuchh maayne hai
chal zara zara sa
zara zara sa
zara zara sa hat ke
chal dara dara sa
dara dara sa
dara dara sa bach ke
chal zara zara sa
zara zara sa
zara zara sa hat ke
chal dara dara sa
dara dara sa
dara dara sa bach ke
ek hockey doongee main rakh ke
chak de
chak de
ek hockey doongi rakh ke
chak de
chak de
ek hockey doongee rakh ke
chak de
chak de
ek hockey doongee main rakh ke
chak six
she is fix
kumbhkaran hai team ki
khair hai jab tak soyee re
aaye jab yeh josh mein
tikne naa paaye koi re
o aayi rey
o chhaayi rey
she is kaur
balbir kaur
koi rok sake naa tok
jo jyaada boley thhok
hai dil mein jo bhee baat
donon honthon ke saath tu bak dey
oy chak de
chak seven
chak eight someones gotta get them straight
hain senior players donon jaanee maanee
ek hai sharaarat
doojee hai manmaanee
yaad karaaye naani ko bhi naani
Aalia Bose and Gunjan lakhani
badnaamee mein bhi naam hai
haha
kaun inhen samjhaaye
coach ka toh bas kaam hai
maze ke dushman aaye
chak de chak de
ek hockey doongee rakh ke
chak de chak de
ek hockey doongee rakh ke
chak de chak de
ek hockey doongee main rakh ke
chak nine ten eleven from the players
having three
they are free
as good as seven
raanee yoon hee naam naheen
yeh back field ki raanee hai
suimuyi bas naam hai mera
lekin badee sayaanee
nes ?? andhra se
naheen kisee se haaree hai
dushman kee dushman hain teenon
hockey se hee yaaree hai
chak twelve and thirteen fourteen
they are always seen
they are always keen
they teach a team to be a team
gul hai iqbaal bhi hai
khoon mein hockey behtee hai
khaandaan kaa naam ya khud ka
yahee museebat rehti hai
north east ki taazgi
inki aan baan aur shaan
donon chup chup rehti hain
par yahee team ki jaan hai
mauli jimik
mary ralte
chak de
chal zara zara sa
zara zara sa
zara zara sa hat ke
chal dara dara sa
dara dara sa
dara dara sa bach ke
chal zara zara sa
zara zara sa
zara zara sa hat ke
chal dara dara sa
dara dara sa
dara dara sa bach ke
ek hockey doongee main rakh ke
chak de chak de
ek hockey doongee rakh ke
chak de chak de
ek hockey doongee rakh ke
chak de chak de
ek hockey doongee main rakh ke
and now
to chak one
because he never never ever down
he plays hard game
in the sun and rain
in laughter and pain
he is always the same
chak de for one and only chak one
kabir khan
chak de chak de
chak de india aa
chak de chak de
chak de india aa aa
6 Responses to "Chak de chak de ek hockey doongee rakh ke"
March 16, 2025 at 8:44 pm
I was not aware that we have won the Hockey World Cup only once in all these years. And to think that it is our National Game.
Cricket has eclipsed every other game.
I am glad that I didn’t “tackle” this song in November when I was writing for SRK birthday. This is apt for today’s occasion 👌🏻
wish there were a few more movies dedicated to this game. The closest the audience gets to a “hockey stick” is in fight scenes
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March 16, 2025 at 9:31 pm
Yes, if this song was not available, then I would have been constrained to use a hockey stick fight scene song with this article.
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March 16, 2025 at 9:53 pm
Atul ji,
Thanks for a very exciting and thrilling description of the match. I truly felt nervous and happy alternately while reading the details.
Frankly, I am not a Hocky lover, but a Sport is a Sport and when it comes to a fight with Pakistan one gets charged. I too got anxious.
You have a knack of writing in such a way that I felt as if I was with you all the time during this Final.
Thanks again for a wonderful article.
-AD
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Atul’s Song A Day- A choice collection of Hindi Film & Non-Film Songs 
March 16, 2025 at 7:34 pm
Atul ji
thanks for the post taking us back to the year we won Hockey world cup title,adding many interesting tidbits.
loved going through.
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March 16, 2025 at 7:55 pm
Thanks for your appreciation.
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