A tinge of Bollywood has been added to Ultimate Kho Kho, with popular singer Badshah (Aditya Prateek Singh Sisodia) joining the league as co-owner of the Mumbai franchise alongside renowned film producer, developer and sports enthusiast Punit Balan. This completes the line-up for the inaugural edition of Ultimate Kho Kho, which will kick off later this year.
Fascinated by the pace and elegant style of the game, and given the nostalgic importance of the sport in his life, Badshah believes Ultimate Kho Kho has huge potential. He aims to inspire and build superstars in this indigenous sport through this association.
Speaking about his first sports venture, Badshah commented:
“My mother used to play Kho-Kho during her college days and this ground-rooted game is very close to my heart. This nostalgic and personal connection triggered me to be part of Ultimate Kho Kho.
“It’s an adrenaline packed, fast-paced indoor sport with extremely agile players doing Sky-Dives in air. In general, the culture of Mumbai is fast and efficient and that’s what we want this team to be. My vision would be to nurture the best players out of this league, and we want to ensure the best environment, infrastructure, training and nutrition for the players.“
Balan, who heads the Balan Group, also owns teams in various other sporting leagues across badminton, tennis, table tennis and handball apart from investing in sports employment startups and actively supporting various sportspersons.
Punit Balan, co-owner of the Mumbai team, added:
“It’s very important to adopt the right approach if you want to grow something. I have been involved in developing sports through leagues in the past and now alongside Ultimate Kho Kho, I want to play a part in Kho-Kho’s journey to success.“
Tenzing Niyogi, CEO, Ultimate Kho Kho, stated:
“We are absolutely thrilled to welcome Badshah and Punit as co-owners of the sixth franchise. We already have on-boarded big corporates as well as the Government of Odisha and now these two popular names from the entertainment sector reflect the positioning and calibre of the league. Kho-Kho has deep roots in Maharashtra and a team representing the state’s capital will surely help us bolster the popularity of the game.“
The traditional sport originated in Maharashtra, the state having been a dominant force in the Indian Kho-Kho circuit. As many as three teams from Maharashtra competed in the National Championships and, in the recently concluded Khelo India Youth Games, they emerged champions in both the boys and the girls categories.
With this development, Ultimate Kho Kho continues to take giant steps towards its mission of revolutionising this home-grown sport. The league had earlier added eminent corporate names to its roster, including the Government of Odisha in collaboration with ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel, Adani Group, GMR Group, Capri Global and KLO Sports.
The league will be broadcast across Sony Pictures Networks India’s (SPNI) sports channels Sony TEN 1, Sony TEN 3 and Sony TEN 4 as well as on SonyLIV, its OTT platform, in Hindi, English, Tamil, Telugu and other regional languages.
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