Tulsidas Balaram

Tulsidas Balaram (born 30 November 1936), also known as Tulsidas Balaraman, is a retired footballer from India who had represented the country in international competitions including the Olympic Games. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football strikers, India has ever produced.

Balaram made his mark playing football for the East Bengal of Kolkata, and captained the team in 1961–62. He was one of the best players of the golden age of Indian football of the 1950s and 1960s. His playing position was as a center forward or as a left winger. In 1962, he received Arjuna Award from the Government of India.

Playing career

After outstanding performance with Hyderabad at the 1956–57 Santosh Trophy and winning the title defeating Bombay 4–1 in final, Balaram was called up for the India national team. His performances against international teams are no less spectacular. He was one of the prime components of India's Gold winning team of 1962 Asian Games. He played every single game and scored goals against Thailand and Japan.

At the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome, India were placed in the group of death with Hungary, France and Peru. They started the competition against the mighty Hungary, losing the game 2–1 with Balaram scoring the consolation goal in the 79th minute. Despite the loss, that result added credibility to India as the Hungarians beat Peru and France 6–2 and 7–0, respectively. India didn't defeat Hungary but almost upset 1958 World Cup semi-finalists France few days later. Balaram was again unstoppable as India held on to a 1–0 lead deep into second half. A mistake from Ram Bahadur denied India a famous victory.

According to Balaram's best game for India, came against Hong Kong in the 1958 Asian Games. The match went into extra time after the scoreline was 2–2 during normal time. Balaram showed peak performance in extra time, assisting two goals and scoring once as India ran out 5–2 victors. Famous journalist Ajay Basu described Balaram as 'superb inside forward'. Basu further said that his improvisation, industriousness and ability to hit curling shots were second to none. While Chuni Goswami had more flair in his play, Balaram had more variety and versatility.

Former Indian international and eminent defender Arun Ghosh described Balaram as a man who had two eyes on the back of his head – so good was his ball distribution. He was also the heart of his teams, directing every attacking move. During his days in East Bengal, Balaram played under coaching of legendary Sushil Bhattacharya. In the 1959 CFL season, he finished as second highest goalscorer with 23 goals. In 1961, he was selected captain of the team and led from the front, playing one of his best ever
seasons. He top scored with 23 goals, won the league's best player award and also led his club to do a double over Mohun Bagan. His popularity
among the ''Red & Gold''s faithful knew no bounds. In early 60s, Mohun Bagan's Dhiren De once tried hard to sign Balaram for the club.

Balaram, known for having incredible partnership with Chuni Goswami and P. K. Banerjee, is one of the "Indian football's holy trinity". Balaram retired in 1963 owing to health related issues. His absence was strongly felt by the Indian team at the AFC Asian Cup in Israel, the following year. For a footballer whose popularity and performances in all versions of the game has few parallels, Balaram's life is full with far too many cases of shoddy treatment. Some of it took place during his playing days, incredibly.

International statistics

Selected international goals

Coaching career

As coach of Calcutta Mayor's XI, Balaram played a part in bringing up players like Basudev Mandal and Sangram Mukherjee. However, he had to face hurdles in every step. When a youth team under his coaching got an invitation to play in Germany, his visa was denied by Indian Govt. AIFF under Priyaranjan Dasmunshi refused to clear his visa on time. His team eventually played wonderfully in Berlin, remaining unbeaten in four games. Two years back, he finally received some much needed recognition from East Bengal Club though he is yet to receive his Padma Shri, according to a short interview published in ''Anandabazar Patrika'' in 2001. Balaram also worked as advisor of the Dum Dum Municipality's Kingston–Nikhil Nandy Football Academy.

Later life and health

On 26 December 2022, Balaram was admitted to a hospital in Kolkata with abdominal distension and other age-related problems.

Honours

India
* Asian Games Gold medal: 1962
*Merdeka Tournament runner-up: 1959

East Bengal
*IFA Shield: 1958

Hyderabad
* Santosh Trophy: 1956–57
Bengal
* Santosh Trophy: 1958–59, 1959–60, 1962–63

Individual
* Arjuna Award: 1962
*Calcutta Football League top scorer: 1961

See also

*List of East Bengal Club captains
*History of the India national football team
* India national football team at the Olympics

References

Bibliography

* Ghosh, Shyam Sundar (September 2022), ''Balaram: The Hero of Indian Football''.
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External links

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Tulsidas Balaram – EBFC
at Twitter

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balaram, Tulsidas
Indian footballers
1936 births
Living people
People from Secunderabad
Footballers from Hyderabad, India
India international footballers
East Bengal Club players
Asian Games medalists in football
Footballers at the 1958 Asian Games
Footballers at the 1962 Asian Games
Association football wingers
Association football forwards
Asian Games gold medalists for India
Olympic footballers of India
Footballers at the 1956 Summer Olympics
Footballers at the 1960 Summer Olympics
Medalists at the 1962 Asian Games
Recipients of the Arjuna Award
Calcutta Football League players