A solitary figure wades through the paddy fields on the outskirts of Imphal, Manipur, as the day nears the end in the eastern reaches of the Himalayas. The young man dons a jacket and a pair of shorts, which despite being mud-stained, are swankier than the clothes worn by the others he helps out on the field.
A group of people immediately turn their eyes towards the man who had captained India in the FIFA U-17 World Cup three years back. “Amarjit, is your practice over?” one of them asks him.
Amarjit Singh Kiyam, who has since then made his way through Indian Arrows and now to the senior national team, replies smiling, “No, my practice was done long back. I was helping my family in the paddy field”
“There’s no shame in going back to your roots and helping your family in the fields,” says Amarjit. “My family has been farming for generations. But I have not paid much attention to farming since I was a kid. I was always too much into football,” he added. “I find peace in the fields.”
The Blue Tigers midfielder may have come a long way in the world of football over the last three years, but when he is back home with his family, he likes to stay connected to his roots.
“Normally, I don’t get to be home for a long time,” he said. “So when I eventually get to come home for a few weeks, it’s generally not the season for cultivation.
“Now I have got some time to go out there and reconnect with my roots. I feel proud. I’ve learned the different aspects of farming, and I can tell you it’s quite a draining activity,” the India U-17 World Cup captain said. However, Amarjit feels “quite refreshed” after spending some time on the field.
Apart from reconnecting with his roots, farming, believes Amarjit, has helped him give something back to his family.
“Family has given me a lot and sacrificed so much to help me become a footballer. The least I can do is help them out on the paddy field. It also allows me to bond with my father. It makes them happy to see their son helping out on the farm,” said Amarjit.
“This is my way of showing that I have not forgotten the hardships we have all faced together previously. If we all work with each other, we all can overcome anything” he added
In the hectic domestic and international season, there is barely any time for a footballer to take up any activity other than the ones that help them improve themselves. However, Amarjit believes that he has found farming to be an activity that has helped him gain a lot of knowledge about the land.
“It’s always nice to have some sort of activity as a hobby—something that helps keep your mind off football for a couple of hours every day. I think farming has done that for me,” he said.
“The amount of knowledge about the land and the crop that you acquire while farming is something that I would never have realised before taking up the activity myself” concluded the ace footballer.
