At the paintball arena, get ready for warfare

At any time during a paintball game, there are at least five points of thrilling action," says paintballer Kiran Soans (33). He's vehemently trying to debunk the notion that the sport is only a teambuilding indulgence. "That's one of its advantages, but that doesn't mean it's all the sport

At any time during a paintballgame, there are at least fivepoints of thrilling action," sayspaintballer Kiran Soans (33). He'svehemently trying to debunk thenotion that the sport is only a teambuildingindulgence. "That's one of itsadvantages, but that doesn't mean it'sall the sport has!" he says.

For other paintballers just as exasperatedwith this popular belief, Soans,the head of Bangalore-based NationalPaintball League, is organising aninternational open paintball tournamentin India next February. Thechampionship is touted as the firstworldwide paintball competition tobe held in India, and will see participantsmainly fromthe paintball-playingMiddleandSouth EastAsian nations." T h i s , "he believes,"shall getpeople tonotice thesport andrealise howadrenaline-soaked itactually is."

Soans discoveredthe sport online in2002, and asked hisbrother from the USto send him a gun.Until 2003 he was abackyard paintballer,and in 2006 he playedat the first corporatechampionship inBangalore. Today,he's a member of NPL All Stars Indiaand went to Taiwan and KualaLumpur last year for tournaments.In India, NPL organises a competitionevery year, in which teams fromHyderabad, Chennai and Bangaloreparticipate. This year, before theWorld Cup Asia in October, Soansplans to expand to Mumbai, Pune andDelhi, and rope in players for the internationalopen.

Soans uses the Internet and radioto spread word about the NPL tournaments.Last year, 12 teams eachfrom Chennai and Hyderabad, and 14from Bangalore had signed up. "Wesaw that it wasn't at all a recreationalsport. These guys were really serious,"says Kaviraj Thapa (29), ex-captainof the NPL All Stars Bangalore.

Ready to compete
The physical rigours involved, he says,are no less than those in any otheroutdoor sport. Each member is handeda 45-minute Do-It-Yourself workoutvideo, done without equipment,and instructed to eat healthy andimprove their stamina. "We've beenwarming up with football, doingstretches and running, and meetingto discuss strategies and equipment."

Teams are split into divisionsaccording to level of experience, andpromoted on the basis of performance.In league matches, teams playwithin their division and the type ofgun also varies. These intricacies thatnot many people know about, are whatmake paintball a good spectator sport."Start off in your neighbourhoodarena, and then move on to somethingbigger when you've bought your ownequipment," says Soans.

Brigadier Sushil Bhasin (retired),owner of Mumbai-based EmpowerAdventure Activities, runs an outdoorpaintball arena in Kolad. He believesthat one can pick up the sport easily."The more innovative you are withthe arena the better the sport gets. Ifpeople like it that way, they'll surelyenter themselves in tournaments."

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