They play with passion, barefoot on dusty turfs where goalposts are fashioned from bamboo sticks. This is their sanctuary, a place where they feel free from the burdens of poverty, and an aroma of future hope fills their lungs with each kick that sends dust swirling into the air. Their ambitions are rooted in the knowledge that some have escaped these circumstances and achieved great success.
Many of them have been deprived of the basic necessities of a youthful life; education remains a distant dream due to extreme poverty. However, they are not deprived of knowledge entirely. They know the stories of football stars who have risen from similar beginnings, they admire football icons, and they are knowledgeable about players who have achieved their dreams starting just as they do. This awareness fuels their enduring happiness. Youthfulness is on their side, and if they continue to play on this dusty turf and wherever opportunity arises, perhaps one day they too will find their way out.
The essence of this enduring happiness is captured through my lenses. In these moments, I experience a sense of nostalgia through their joy – the joy of winning, of scoring, of simply playing football. It’s as if, for that fleeting time, they’ve forgotten all their troubles and desires. For that moment, football grants them happiness, and it will continue to do so as they recount these stories and experiences in their later years; these memories will forever remain.
