Faces of India – 345, Pankaj Advani Billiards Player
26th January 2018 dated newspapers featured the winners of various bravery and civilian award winners. The list featured Pankaj Advani billiards player for Padma Bhushan.
As soon as I read that my mind went racing back to the time I had interacted with him for a short while. It was a charity event where he was welcomed by Have a Heart Foundation. (The HHF funds the life saving heart surgeries of financially weak people – infants to adults.)
Pankaj Advani made a generous donation for the surgery of an infant. This was in December 2010. He was fresh from winning the first gold of the Asian Games 2010 for India in the English Billiards Singles event.
The organisation had called me for photo coverage of the event. Pankaj Advani never looked straight in to the camera. I had to request his brother/friend to ask him to look at the camera once. And this is the picture, with no smile to my disappointment.
However he seemed happy handling the infant and answering the press reporters. A winner of so many awards, he seemed such a down to earth person! I hope to capture him in action while playing billiards and snookers some day.
Faces of India
a series through which I intend to portray the various characters of my country whom I met during my travels. I bring back souvenirs, frozen moments from my travels, why not some memories of people I have met and interacted during the travels. Faces of India is a weekly series in my blog since MARCH 2011. See more here…
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Pankaj Advani is the recipient of Padma Shri in 2009.
That is a really big honor to receive an award like that. Really great photography.
That’s a cool shot. Pankaj is a celebrity in India.
Beautiful captures!
Wow! Wonderful clicks, Indrani! Loved reading about the simplicity and generosity of a celebrity. You caught him at the right time, smiling at the baby 🙂
Great personality, good to know about him and your meeting.
Nice photos 🙂
The last shot was awesome…the baby looking at the hands. Tells a story
Wonderful portraits!
This is such a heartwarming story! 🙂
really nice click
He always appears to be down to earth, amiable and focused. Like him for his easy grace and talent.
Such an inspiration to nowadays young generation.
His fingers are so artistic! No doubt he is a winner of the game… Nice photos, Indrani. He is really an inspiration… 🙂
So nice. Loved the post.
Beautiful pictures. 🙂
Awww – sweet shots.