While travelling for a basketball tournament, the Ekalavyas team spotted a 7’3’’ giant towering head and shoulders above everyone else at the busy Krantivira Sangolli Rayanna (KSR) Bengaluru City Railway Station.
Who is he?
Youth Nationals to Railway Coolie
We learnt that this person’s name is Kumar, and that he once played competitive basketball, representing Uttar Pradesh at the Youth National Basketball Championship in the early 2000s.
Ekalavyas audience responds
Following Ekalavyas’ Instagram post, former Kerala international player Eudrick Pereira identified Kumar and said he had even played against him.
Pereira wrote, “I know Kumar and have actually played against him. He represented UP in the U16 Youth Nationals in 2004 at Gotan, Rajasthan, my first National Championship appearance. Even then, he was a 7-foot monster and incredibly well-built. He was working as a coolie at that time too.”
Another person commented about Kumar’s time in Uttar Pradesh.
According to the commenter, late Indian women’s coach Zareen Zaidi also spotted Kumar at the station in Bengaluru, brought him to Lucknow to play basketball, arranged accommodation for him, and covered his expenses. Zaidi reportedly arranged shoes for him from the United States because Kumar’s feet were too large for regular footwear.
According to Bangalore Mirror, Kumar has worked for decades at KSR Bengaluru City Railway Station and wears Badge No. 230, which was previously worn by his father, who was also a porter at the same station.
After playing for two years, Kumar is believed to have eventually returned home after the death of his brother.
Today, decades later, Kumar remains a railway porter at the same station where he was once discovered.
Let talent not get lost at the wayside!
Tall People Project
India Isn’t Short on Tall People, They’re Just Hard to Find - 'Tall People Project' launched by Ekalavyas
For decades, a convenient myth has followed Indian basketball: “We just don’t have tall people.”
While Kumar seems content with his career, the encounter was a reminder of how much untapped physical potential exists across India.
If you know someone exceptionally tall who could potentially have a future in basketball, we want to hear from you.
Help us find India’s hidden giants. Fill out our form below and tell us more about them.
If you’ve come this far...
Appeal to readers - ₹₹ Support Ekalavyas: Ekalavyas is India’s first and only basketball media company. We are not foreign-funded, nor investor backed. Your support and encouragement have got us this far. We now need your financial assistance to ensure we can keep providing you timely, accurate and important information.
Please contribute via https://razorpay.me/@ekalavyas 🙏🏾.
We are accepting contributions as low as Rs. 1/- (including a small processing fee charged by the payment gateway provider). Thank you for playing a part in keeping media independent and objective!