Basketball Village: Where the Kids Are Chasing Dreams, One Dribble at a Time

Camera: Ribhu Chatterjee Video Editor: Harpal Rawat

In every nook and lane of Noida's Gejha village, lives a basketball player. Not cricket, not football, but basketball! Kids from low income families are able to change their lives by learning to play basketball. And that's the reason why Gejha is now famously called the 'basketball wala gaon.'

Basketball player Pradyut Voleti is the brains behind this initiative. He formed Dribble Academy Foundation, a non-profit in 2015 to take basketball to streets and villages of India and make it accessible for everyone.

"The idea of Dribble Academy Foundation came in so we could take the game of basketball to multiple villages and provide these children with an opportunity to learn valuable life skills through the game."

Pradyut Voleti, Founder DAF

Pradyut started his mission from Gejha in 2016 with only five kids, half a court, and two bamboo sticks in the village's local NEM school. Today, DAF has trained over 3,000 children across eight Indian villages.

Around 600 kids from Gejha village come to train in several batches from 3 to 8 pm every day.

Introducing the game and to generate the need for it was the main issue in the beginning as the villages were hesitant to send their kids to play. After a lot of persuasion and encouragement, DAF managed to get over 150 kids to play basketball.

These kids come from unprivileged backgrounds; their parents work hard doing meagre jobs to earn a living for the family. But the kids work hard, determined to achieve the best that they can. And, that is what inspires the coaches at the academy to do more for them.

What Really Changed the Mindset of People?

Awareness spread about Dribble Academy only when the students went to the next level with the game.

Children from the academy started to play in tournaments in and outside Delhi, they earned scholarships in schools and colleges. Two boys from Gejha went on to represent India at the NBA world championship.

"When kids started getting success through the game. Now parents support their kids. My mother also comes to watch me play. She claps for me and says, 'My daughter is playing basketball'."

Sonali, Joined Dribble Academy in 2018

"Sir must have faced a lot of trouble to achieve all this because girls don't come to play so easily. So, he had to meet everyone's parents and motivate them."

Shivani, Joined Dribble Academy in 2016

Sports for Change: Girls of Gejha Village Are Dunking Many Stereotypes

Urmila Kajal Singh was the first girl to join the basketball academy in Gejha in 2016. Today, she is working as a coach at the academy and trains around 200 kids.

"I convinced the girls in my class to come to play basketball here. From five kids, we grew to 15 in number. In no time 50 girls (were) playing here."

Urmila Kajal Singh, Coach, DAF

Through basketball, Sonali got a scholarship in one of Noida's top schools.

"My background is not strong enough for me to get admission to Ramagya School. My father wouldn't have been able to afford it. I got admission there only because of the skills I learnt here at Dribble Academy."

Sonali, Joined Dribble Academy in 2017

Dribble Academy also tries to bridge the gap between the education given in private schools and government schools. Apart from teaching discipline and general life skills, the academy has its own digital literacy centre.

"We are providing the students with out-of-the-box things which are not always taught in the classrooms, such as how to get into the Army, how to get into civil services, what are the different examinations they need to prepare for."

Pradyut Voleti, Founder DAF

The academy focuses on education, mental health, and even the financial difficulties of the kids. Every kid at the court wears a jersey, which makes them equal, makes them a unit.

Dribble Academy Foundation aims to reach 100 villages and 1,00,000 children by 2030.

"We are hoping that more corporates, more trusts, and more schools join us, collaborate with us, and understand that these children deserve an equal opportunity to compete at all levels. Because this game can literally go to the streets."

Pradyut Voleti, Founder DAF