Maoist-hit Jharkhand village crazy for hockey, produces international-level woman players

Hesal, a tribal village in Jharkhand, has produced many national and international players since 1990. Poor girls work as labourers and farmhands to buy hockey sticks and train on empty stomachs to realise their dream.

Sanjoy Dey


Hockey enthusiasts from Hesal village play a village-level match in Khunti in Jharkhand.(Diwakar Prasad/ HT Photo)

The soil in Hesal produces more hockey players than paddy.