Indian cricket has seen plenty of Cinderella stories. But Hardik Pandya’s life story is a tale that could be a riveting Bollywood biopic someday. Pandya will be one of the central stars for the Indian cricket team in the upcoming Asia Cup tournament, with much expected from the all-rounder. He also captains the Mumbai Indians franchise in the cash-rich Indian Premier League. But life was not always this hunky-dory for the cricketer who saw his fair share of struggles in his early cricketing days.
As Mumbai Indians owner Nita Ambani had recently said, when she had first met the Pandya brothers, Hardik and Krunal, they were surviving on a diet of only Maggi.
“When scouting for talent, I used to go to Ranji Trophy matches with scouts. One day, our scouts brought two young and lanky boys. I was talking to them, and they said that for three years, they’ve eaten nothing but Maggi noodles because they’ve had no money,” Amabani had said recently in an interview. “But in them, I saw the spirit, the passion and the hunger that they wanted to make it big. In 2015, I bought Hardik Pandya at 10 thousand US dollars in the auction, and today, he’s the proud captain of Mumbai Indians,” she said.
The Maggi Diet: Surviving on a dream
Hardik Pandya (right) with his father and brother Krunal in their younger days. (PHOTO: Hardik Pandya X)
Hardik Pandya had himself opened up on his less fortunate days when money was short in supply. He said that both brothers would eat Maggi from morning to night, rather than an athlete’s diet.
I would eat Maggi in the morning and at night. I would eat Maggi before going to the ground and also when I came home. The whole match was played on a Maggi diet
“There was a time when my diet was Maggi. I was a huge Maggi fan. But it was a combination of being a fan and the situation I was in. At that time, I loved Maggi, and it was also very difficult to afford a proper diet because of financial problems. Healthy diets are expensive. Now I can afford it, and I can eat whatever I want for my body’s needs, but at that time, there were many financial problems. I would eat it in the morning and at night. I would eat Maggi before going to the ground and also when I came home. The whole match was played on a Maggi diet,” Hardik Pandya had once said in an interview for a show called What The Duck with Vikram Sathaye.
Hardik Pandya (left) takes a selfie with Indian cricket team players. (PHOTO: Hardik Pandya X)
The paradox of pride: A car but no kit
Hardik Pandya also revealed that there were days when they played on kits borrowed from the state cricket association while they were driving around in a car. He explained how there was a misconception in state cricket circles due to the paradox of owning a new car but needing to take kits from the association.
“Krunal and I had a motto: never to seek sympathy from anyone, no matter what. If we are doing well, be strong; if we are not, also be strong. Back in those days we had to borrow our cricket equipment. We had taken our entire kit from the BCA (Baroda Cricket Association) for a year. I was 17, and Krunal was maybe 19. But we owned a car back in those days. People had a huge misconception about it. It raised many questions because people saw us in a car but wondered why we were taking a kit. They knew I had a car but didn’t know the situation at home. We had financial problems.
Back in those days we had to borrow our cricket equipment. We had taken our entire kit from the BCA (Baroda Cricket Association) for a year
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“The reason was that we had just bought the car, and then my father, who was the sole earning member in our family, suddenly had two heart attacks in one night, and had another heart scare six months later, but we reached the hospital on time. Our financial problems started there. My father was the only source of income, and you can’t expect him to work after the attacks. We had just bought the car and never had any savings. We were like a ‘royal family’: whatever we earned, we spent—sometimes more than we earned.
Hardik Pandya (right) with his father. (PHOTO: Hardik Pandya X)
WATCH: Hardik Pandya talks about his Maggi eating days
The humble hustle: Playing for Rs 400 a match
Hardik Pandya also revealed how Krunal and he played in village cricket games to earn a quick buck. While Hardik was getting paid Rs 400, his brother was earning slightly more per match.
Through the ups and downs, with my people by my side. Woke up every morning raring to go, with the will to become stronger, with the will to become fitter and play for my country. Always grateful to those who stood by me, who encouraged me, who guided me 🙏❤️ pic.twitter.com/4gi32ijq1k
— hardik pandya (@hardikpandya7) July 18, 2022
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“After our father’s heart attack, we had to pay EMIs for the car, and our cricket earnings were not very high at the time. In junior cricket we were playing well, so we were earning a little. We would get 40,000 rupees maybe. Most of the money we got would go into paying the EMI, which was 10,000 rupees a month. We would go and play cricket in villages to earn money—Krunal earned more than me. He would get 500 rupees a match, and I would get 400 rupees. We would somehow manage to pay the EMI, but it was difficult for two brothers who had to go to the ground. We used to go to the ground in the car only,” Hardik Pandya said.
We would park the car away so no one would see us and laugh, thinking, ‘He’s driving a Rs 8 lakh car but can’t afford petrol!’
Pandya was picked by the Mumbai Indians in the 2015 IPL auction for Rs 10 lakh. He then became a part of Mumbai’s core team that won IPL titles in 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020. Pandya went to Gujarat Titans and helped them claim the IPL title in their first season in 2022. Since then, Hardik Pandya has returned to Mumbai, where he took over captaincy from long-time skipper Rohit Sharma. In the previous retention window, Hardik Pandya was retained by Mumbai for a whopping Rs 16.35 crore.
#Throwback To those days when I would travel in a truck to play local matches which has taught me so much 🙏🏾
It’s been an amazing journey so far 🇮🇳
Hell yes I love this sport! #DreamsDoComeTrue pic.twitter.com/nHaIG65S1s
— hardik pandya (@hardikpandya7) September 20, 2019
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Petrol in bottles: The lengths taken for self-respect
Hardik Pandya had also revealed how Krunal and he would park his car away from the gas station and then buy petrol in bottles and then fill it in the car when no one was looking.
“There’s nothing more important than self-respect in life. So, what we used to do was, obviously, a good car eats up a lot of petrol, and you can’t ask for mileage. The way I drove, it would give even less mileage. So, we would take a 1-litre or 2-litre water bottle, put 100 rupees worth of petrol in one. We would park the car away so no one would see us and laugh, thinking, ‘He’s driving a Rs 8 lakh car but can’t afford petrol!’ We’d fill the bottles and then pour it in the car away from the pump. That was my life until six months before I was picked to play in the IPL. In six months, my life changed,” Hardik Pandya added.
