Exclusive Interview with Sameer Kochar

Sameer Kochar, one of the presenters on the Extraa Innings Show on SET Max, the official broadcaster of the DLF Indian Premier League (IPL), talks about his experience as a sports presenter and compares entertainment with sports.

Sameer, were you always a cricket fan or has the IPL attracted you to cricket?
I've been a footballer all my life and I've really been involved with football. I've played at the State level for Delhi. But cricket is something every Indian watches and I am a cricket buff as well. Yes, being a presenter is a new ball-game because I'm not a sports journalist, and being on the field, being on the other side of the game where you're actually presenting the game is pretty unnerving. But after getting into it, it's been fun; it's been filled with lot of excitement, the stadiums being packed, people coming in to watch the game. It's been absolutely amazing - the kind of response the Indian Premiere League has had. So I'm not complaining and I really enjoyed myself

Generally, we see people related to cricket presenting shows like this - former cricketers or commentators. So how difficult was it for you as an actor to talk on cricket?
Well, you hit the nail on the head. I'm basically an actor and an actor is a person who portrays a character on command. And I'd like to believe that I'm somebody who can do that. I'm learning, I'm young. I have time on my side. I have been involved in anchoring for sometime now doing shows on various channels. Yes, as a sports journalist, one has an added edge where you talk about sports. But for me, my clear role was defined by SET Max which said I am a presenter and I present the show forward as a cricket buff, not as somebody who is knowledgeable about the game. I present the show forward to people and the panelists who know exactly what to say about the game. So I was the link between the audience and the questions they would ask and what the panelists really knew. So it was a clearly defined role and I enjoyed that.

Have you come to know a lot about the game in your stint as a cricket presenter?
Yes, I certainly have. Because cricket for me was bat and ball, a pitch, the outfield and the stadium but what was behind it was some amazing display of people who really want to watch the game. Yes, I was not very well-versed with the game before this in terms of technicalities like the condition of the pitch, the outfield, the playing conditions, etc. But I've really enjoyed my stint, I've learnt with every game, I'm still learning and I'm evolving and I hope that when I come back next year, I would be bigger, not in terms of size but bigger in terms of knowledge of the game and enjoy myself even better and bring the game forward to people in a better way.

Sameer, you belong to the entertainment fraternity and cricket as we see, in one or the other way, is entertainment as well. So how do you relate sport and entertainment and how similar do you think the roles of a sportsman and an entertainer are?
I think pretty much the same. If you look at it broadly, you have the NBA; you have baseball teams that are owned by Hollywood actors. And when you look at sport, it is a form of entertainment. It is a medium of people enjoying themselves cheering for their team and for their country. And here is something that comes your way which is a shorter version of cricket; it brings the stadium culture back, people going to stadiums, enjoying themselves, not only for cricket but for the performances on the field by various actors and performers. So I think if you mix sports with entertainment, more people would like to watch it.

As an actor, what do you think is more challenging, the job of a sportsman or the job of an actor and entertainer?
I think entertainer includes an actor and a presenter but for me acting is something that is really hard. It's a lot about the experience of being another person in front of the camera but as a sportsman, its really hard to go out there and perform for your team, you have a good day, you have a bad day. Similarly as an actor, you have a day when you're feeling good about the role you are playing (and on another day, you don't). But on the whole, if you look at both the mediums, they're both very close to each other and both have a lot of interaction and involvement.

But the sportsmen don't get retakes...
That they don't. But nor do the presenters because it is live for us as well. Yes, as an actor, you can take retakes but even if you take a hundred retakes and ultimately if you don't get it right, you don't get it.

Which form of the game do you enjoy watching the most, Test, ODIs or T20?
Well, I'll be very partial towards T20 as it is the only format I've covered. But I'm a cricket buff and as a spectator I really enjoy watching Test cricket as well as the one-dayers. I think none of the forms of the game will be affected because of T20. This is a different format, it is entertainment, and on the whole it is a cricketing extravaganza which is glamorous and exciting. You have the best players in the world playing with each other. So Test cricket is amazing for the purists of the game, one-day is amazing as well and T20, I think is the force to reckon with.