Saturday, May 04, 2024 | Last Update : 06:05 AM IST
Unity in diversity at half marathon
Three of the runners were dressed up as Ram, Sita and the ten-headed Ravan.
Jo dauda wohi Sikandar! Keeping this inspirational one-liner in mind, I ran the 21-km Delhi Half Marathon on Sunday. As I had practised hard this year, unlike last year, running up to 16-17 km was a breeze. After about 19 km, I got tired. I slowly inched forward, and found a new meaning to ADHM (Airtel Delhi Half Marathon) — Ae Dil Hai Mushkil.
It was at this point of time that I came across a group of volunteers, all in turbans, offering water and encouraging the runners thus: “Chak de! Chak de!” They were prompting tired participants like me to move on. Their tone and zest put a new spring in my steps.
I decided to halt for a while and talked to their leader who told me that the volunteers comprised Muslims, Christians, Hindus as well as sardars. They were promoting one human race — the race which does not have any religion or caste.
After a few sips of water, I again started running. It was a sea of all kinds of runners — sprinters, joggers, woggers. Many were in colourful attire. One did a Salman Khan, and was bare-chested, undaunted by the morning chill. Some ran bare-foot. Some wore masks. And the smog didn’t dampen their enthusiasm.
Three of the runners were dressed up as Ram, Sita and the ten-headed Ravan. They smiled, held hands and exchanged pleasantries in a rare show of Ram-Ravan camaraderie in this kaleidoscope of humanity! It was a diversity focussed on one goal — the goal of human fitness.
They all represented a unity in diversity. In this race, as William Yeats said, “There are no strangers; only friends you haven’t yet met.”
Despite my fatigued limbs, I soldiered on. The 21-km goal neared... and then only one km remained. Testing my level of endurance and pushing my physical boundaries, I moved on, to the claps and cheers of onlookers and finished the 21-km run.
