India Isn’t Short on Tall People, They’re Just Hard to Find - 'Tall People Project' launched by Ekalavyas
The one-of-a-kind initiative invites the public to report exceptionally tall individuals—whether themselves, a friend, or even a stranger spotted on the street.
For decades, a convenient myth has followed Indian basketball: “We just don’t have tall people.”
The Tall People Project – India is out to bust that perception wide open.
The initiative, launched by Ekalavyas - India’s premier basketball news media platform, invites citizens to report exceptionally tall individuals—whether themselves, a friend, or even a stranger spotted on the street.
Submissions can include photos or videos to help scouts evaluate height and identify young prospects who could be guided into sports where stature matters, such as basketball and volleyball.
The project’s underlying message is clear: India’s challenge isn’t the absence of tall individuals, but their distribution.
Problem of Distribution
Statistics show that India’s average height remains modest compared to many basketball powerhouses. According to global growth data, Indian men average around 5’5” (165 cm) and women about 5’0” (152 cm)—significantly shorter than the global averages of roughly 5’9” (175 cm) for men and 5’4” (162 cm) for women. Northern European nations like the Netherlands top the charts with men averaging 6’0” (183 cm) and women around 5’7” (170 cm).
Unlike countries such as the Netherlands or Serbia, where tall populations cluster regionally and create natural talent pools, India’s tall individuals are scattered across an immense and diverse country. This low concentration means that even when a child shoots up to 6’4” (193 cm) in a small town, their potential often goes unnoticed—especially if no basketball or volleyball infrastructure exists nearby.
Averages tell only a partial story
But averages tell only part of the story. In a country of over 1.4 billion people, even a small percentage of above-average individuals translates into a massive absolute number of potential athletes.
A few thousand men and women over 6’6” (198 cm) may be a tiny fraction of the population, but it’s enough to build competitive basketball teams—if those individuals can be found and nurtured sooner rather than later.
That’s exactly what the Tall People Project – India hopes to achieve. By crowdsourcing sightings from across the nation, the campaign seeks to bridge the gap between scattered height and structured opportunity.
For Indian basketball, the next generation of seven-footers might already be out there—hidden in plain sight, waiting for someone to notice.
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