IPL: 10 Instances when cameraman stole limelight

Over the years, the Indian Premier League (IPL) has been a successful tournament and is followed by millions of fans across the world. Along with the game, there has been a glamour quotient attached to the league and provides wholesome entertainment to various age groups. The cameramen have also played a key role in engaging cricket fans on their TV sets since the inception of the cash-rich T20 league. It can be related to the commentators cracking a joke, the crowd’s interesting banners, capturing the reactions of celebrities enjoying the match, and also providing a glimpse of the female cricket fans cheering for their favourite teams. Many of the clips have gone viral due to the cameramen taking an active interest in the off-field activities as well. Here are 10 instances when an IPL cameraman stole the limelight: 1. Nita Ambani’s mother praying for MI’s win in IPL 2017 The owners of Mumbai Indians (MI), the Ambani family, have been avid supporters of the team since 2008. The wife and sons of Mukesh Ambani have been active in cheering for the team in the stands and have also been involved in the auction process. Quite interestingly, the IPL 2017 final between Mumbai Indians and Rising Pune Supergiant witnessed an aged woman praying for the team to win surrounded by the blue jerseys in the stands. After MI clinched the nail-biting thriller by one run, she was termed as ‘Prayer aunty’ by cricket fans. Eventually, it was revealed that the elderly woman praying for MI’s team is none other than Nita Ambani’s mother Purnimaben Dalal. She went viral in no time and was certainly the lucky charm for the third title win of the franchise. 2. RCB fan girl in IPL 2019 Deepika Ghose. (Photo Source: Twitter) In IPL 2019, the cameraman captured a girl cheering for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) against Sunrisers Hyderabad at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. She was featured on the giant screen a couple of times, wearing a red-coloured dress, and hogged the limelight. Eventually, she was referred to as ‘RCB fan girl’. The general public somehow found out her real identity and shared it on all the social media platforms. Her name turned out to be Deepika Ghose, who is a trained dancer in contemporary, ballet, Bollywood, hip-hop, jazz, and African dance. The followers of Deepika Ghose rose to nearly three lakh from a mere five thousand in a day and was declared a national crush. After gaining popularity, she gained a verified tag from Instagram as well and posted an update confirming her original page. 3. Malti Chahar – Parle G girl moment The Mystery girl went viral during this IPL season. (Photo Source: Twitter) It was the 11th edition of the tournament in 2018 when Malti Chahar was spotted cheering for Chennai Super Kings for which her brother Deepak Chahar played. Deepak earned himself praise, picking up 10 wickets in 12 matches of the tournament, while his sister also grabbed the attention as the cameramen spotted her multiple times throughout the season. Malti was spotted enacting the same pose as the girl on the cover of Parle G biscuit during the match between CSK and KKR. The speculations about her real name began immediately across social media platforms. Some reports also claimed that she was a child artist in some of the advertisements when she was growing up. But she refuted all the claims and posted a meme surrounding her photo. In the caption of her post on Instagram, she lauded the creativity of people for relating her to Parle G Girl. Malti also revealed her relationship with the CSK pace bowler as well. Also, it came to light that she was one of the finalists in the FBB Femina Miss India 2014 as well. 4. Virat talking to Anushka in IPL 2015 during match break (Photo Source: Instagram) The power couple, Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma, started dating each other in 2013. The Bollywood actress Anushka frequently attended Virat’s matches in India and abroad. During a match between Delhi Daredevils and Royal Challengers Bangalore in IPL 2015, the couple made their public appearance together for the first time in the tournament’s history. Anushka was sitting in the VIP enclosure adjacent to the player’s dressing room during the match. But the match was halted due to inclement weather conditions, resulting in the players returning to the dressing room. It was then Kohli was spotted sneaking in a chat with Anushka. However, Virat was informally warned by BCCI after he was found to breach the anti-corruption protocols. In the BCCI’s anti-corruption code, franchise contracted players are not allowed to meet their girlfriends or wives during an ongoing fixture of the tournament. 5. Deepak Chahar’s proposal to Jaya Bhardwaj Deepak Chahar. (Photo source: Disney+Hotstar) In the second phase of IPL 2021 in the UAE, Deepak Chahar proposed to his girlfriend, Jaya Bhardwaj after Chennai Super Kings lost their last league fixture against Punjab Kings at the Dubai International Stadium. The camera captured the moment as the officials and players gathered just before the post-match presentation ceremony. The proposal was accepted by Jaya wholeheartedly and both hugged each other and the people surrounding them. Later, it was revealed that captain MS Dhoni advised Chahar to propose Jaya before the playoffs to not let the player get distracted during the knockout games. Chahar had a spectacular run that season and returned with 14 wickets in 15 matches. He played a key role to help the CSK team lift the elusive IPL trophy for the fourth time. Speaking of the ongoing IPL 2022, Chahar has missed all the games so far due to an injury. He is expected to return to action in the last week of this month (April). 6. Rakhee Kapoor Tandon – Girl who ruled IPL 2015 final Rakhee Kapoor Tandon (Photo Source: Hotstar) In the IPL 2015 final between Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings, the cameraman spotted a beautiful lady in the post-match ceremony, who gave an award on behalf of Yes Bank. Social media was quick to find out that she was the daughter of Yes Bank’s founder Rana Kapoor. In the past, Rakhee has worked as an investment banker in the United States. She also holds an MBA degree from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. She owns Rural Agri Ventures India Pvt Ltd and is the promoter and director of Raas Housing Finance. In 2015, she was one of the 25 most influential women in India. She quickly grabbed the attention of the public and was trending on social media as well. Her earlier images of providing an award of Yes Bank Maximum Sixes to RCB captain Virat Kohli soon resurfaced on social media as well. 7. Jamieson smiling at RCB therapist Navnita Gautam in IPL 2021 Jamieson smiling at RCB physio (Photo Source: Twitter) Kiwi fast bowler Kyle Jamieson rose to prominence in early 2021 and was eventually bought by RCB in the auction. Jamieson had a moderate outing for the franchise, picking up nine wickets and scoring 65 runs in nine appearances. However, the Black Caps cricketer grabbed attention when he was caught by the cameramen flirting with the RCB therapist Navnita Gautam during the match against Kolkata Knight Riders. Although the team lost the league match, the images of both the individuals smiling at each other in the dugout went viral in no time. Incidentally, Navnita was the first and only female support staff of any of the eight IPL teams, which contested in IPL 2019 after being appointed by RCB as its sports massage therapist. Since then, she has been with the squad. In the past, she has been a support staff in the Global T20 Canada and the Indian Women’s Basketball Team. 8. Couple caught kissing in IPL 2022 Couple. (Photo Source: Twitter) Recently, the cameraman hogged the limelight after it caught a couple kissing in the stands during Match 10 of IPL 2022 between Gujarat Titans and Delhi Capitals at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune. The pictures were shared through all the social media platforms, and people started to have varied reactions. It is a common thing in the West, where couples kiss each other to gain the attention of the camera. But it was first-of-a-kind in India’s premier T20 tournament, which is broadcast in 100+ countries. People started to demand Kiss Cam in the IPL as well, which scans through the crowd and selects couples to kiss at sporting events. 9. Gayatri Reddy – A permanent fixture of the cameraman Gayatri Reddy (Photo Source: Twitter) She is the daughter of T Venkattram Reddy, owner of the Deccan Chronicle. The Deccan Chronicle were the owners of the Deccan Chargers team until the Indian Premier League 2012. Gayatri came into the spotlight after cameras spotted her in the stands across all Deccan Chargers’ matches. She was a key decision-maker for the franchise. Gayatri is an editor for the Deccan Chronicle newspaper and writes on travel, fashion, sports, and cuisines. She did B.Sc (Hons) in construction management from the University of London. In September 2012, the Deccan Chargers franchise was terminated from the tournament due to financial reasons. However, the Bombay High court ordered BCCI to pay INR 4814.67 crores to the Deccan Chronicle group after they were illegally banned by the Board. 10. Sreesanth crying after Harbhajan’s slap Sreesanth. (Photo Source: Twitter) During a game between Mumbai Indians and Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) in the inaugural edition of the IPL, a shameful incident took place when MI captain Harbajan Singh reportedly slapped fast bowler S Sreesanth, who featured for Punjab. While the reason is still unknown, Harbhajan vented his anger on Sreesanth after Mumbai went down by 66 runs. The camera caught Sreesanth crying after the match, with teammates and owner Preity Zinta consoling him. Harbhajan was fined 100% of his match fee and was banned for 11 matches. Hence, he could not take part in the remaining matches of the same edition.

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IPL: 10 Instances when cameraman stole limelight

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