In a city where every square feet of land is treated as wealth and open spaces are scant, sporting activities have taken a backseat for children and fitness enthusiasts.
Badminton, which is a kind of community sport wherein people can play on their streets or in open spaces, is one of the losers because of the exponential growth of vehicle population and lack of open spaces.
However, the dismal situation is fast changing, with some land owners converting their vacant plots into indoor badminton centres, disregarding potential financial gain.
All these land owners who have set up badminton courts are die-hard sports enthusiasts and united in their cause of promoting the game.
V. Mahesh Kumar, director of Tejesh Sports Academy in Puzhuthivakkam (near Madipakkam), says the academy was one of the first in Chennai to launch a dedicated indoor badminton facility with wooden courts in 2012.
He says the reason for starting a badminton centre, along with his friend C. Thirumugam, was the absence of dedicated, professional badminton facilities in their locality.
“Even the few badminton courts were located in private colleges or schools, and it was not easy for outsiders to use these facilities,” he says.
All of a sudden, there seems to be a growing tribe of sports enthusiasts who are setting up badminton courts all over the city.
S. Varadaraj, proprietor of ASR Sports Academy in Kolathur, though not a professional player, says the fun of playing the game is what got him hooked.
Though it may take a while for the city to compete with, say, the badminton academies in Hyderabad, these businessmen-turned-sports entrepreneurs hope to create champions by recruiting national-level players as coaches.
