Two years back, India’s star player Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul, stirred an ugly controversy after they appeared on an episode of a talk show ‘Koffee With Karan’. A lot of his comments from the show didn’t go down well with the fans and as a result, both Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul were provisionally suspended by the BCCI.
Two years after that controversy, Hardik Pandya has finally opened up about the aftermath of the controversy and what he went through.
Well, recently, in an interview with the Times of India, Hardik Pandya opened up about the controversy for the first time in two years. He revealed that it was for the first time in his life when he wasn’t in control of his own life, however, he was able to pull himself through that period because of the support he received from his family. He said:
“I really didn’t know what ‘misogynistic’ meant. At first, I laughed thinking it was some word being used to make fun of me. Then a friend told me it means someone who strongly dislikes women, How can I dislike women? Mom, didi (sister), bhabhi (sister-in-law), Natasa – they’re all women. I adore them. My home is all about women. We are, because they are,”
He added:
“For the first time, I wasn’t in control of my own life. Everything around me started to crumble. I had to lock myself up. If not for my family, I’d have lost a great deal of everything. They were and continue to remain the backbone – the women in my family,”
He also opened up about how he grew up in a family, where money was always an issue, however, they had their own freedom and he wishes to give the same freedom to his newborn baby. He said:
“Today, it’s my turn to be the backbone of my family,” Hardik Pandya added. “I grew up in a family where there was absolute freedom. We were taught to make our own decisions. I’ll give my son the same freedom,”
“We were raised in very tough times. Money was always an issue in the family. We struggled. But we were happy. Cricket gave me and my brother something to fight for. Cricket is once again putting my life in perspective,” he signed off.
