“CK Nayudu par kaun book padhega aaj? (In today’s times, who will read a book on CK Nayudu?)”

Vijay Nayudu with Nari Contractor

These were the words of Vijay Nayudu when I had spoken to him for the first time in 2017 requesting inputs to write the biography of his famous grandfather and India’s first Test captain Col. CK Nayudu. But once he was convinced of my endeavor, he put his heart and soul into the initiative, and I couldn’t have asked for a better guide than him for my first book. He had not only helped in providing the right contacts who could speak about CK (as he was called) but gave me an access to the treasure trove of articles, photos, letters and books on his grandfather. And when the time for the launch of the book arrived, he was present at each step, right from requesting the presence of cricketers and other eminent personalities to meticulously planning the minutes of the event. 

 

Since, the news of his demise came in yesterday, all those memories are playing in loop in front of my eyes. My association with him happened thanks to my father who had worked along with him in Indian Oil Corporation. 

 

But before joining the corporate world, he had carried on the rich legacy of his illustrious grandfather. Vijay Nayudu began his cricket career under the watchful eyes of CK at Indore. Vijay would score centuries at school cricket and come back home to describe the knock to his grandfather. Being the man that CK was, he would never allow Vijay to get complacent after a good knock and would rather focus on how the boy had been dismissed. The lesson was clear – never repeat the mistake. 

 

With such guidance, Vijay made his Ranji Trophy debut for Madhya Pradesh against Vidarbha at the Nehru Stadium, Indore in 1966 aged 22-years. With a half-century in the second innings of this low scoring match, it was an excellent start. However, he was not able to score runs consistently post this to have a chance of representing India. Nevertheless, he carried on and played 47 First-Class games and also led Madhya Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy. Later, he also played club cricket for Bombay Gymkhana (a place he was fond of) and went on to play well into his 60s. During a function at Bombay Gymkhana in 2017, recalling his first impression of Vijay, noted historian Ramchandra Guha had said, “When I was asked to come and speak here, I agreed because it was about CK Nayudu and the first Test match on Indian soil. But I agreed also in part because of the person who was calling me. The person who was calling thought that I was a big shot and had written books and all. But he did not know that I agreed in part because the first Ranji match which I watched was one in which Vijay Nayudu was captain of Madhya Pradesh. He was one of my first cricketing heroes. I was 10 years old when I had watched him in Dehradun. He stood very close at silly mid-off, and I had never seen that before.”

 

With Sunil Gavaskar at a function in Mumbai in 2023

In the Mumbai cricketing circles, he was a well-known and respected figure. He would go any distance to help those connected with his beautiful game. At Indian Oil, he was a pioneer as far as sports was concerned. He helped formulate a policy which would aid budding sportsmen and not just cricketers in their initial years. It is largely thanks to his efforts (and the support that he would have got from others) that several youngsters aspiring to make it big in the world of sports don’t have to worry about their bread and better once they are with Indian Oil. 

A humble and down to earth person, he would rarely ask anything for himself. Once, seeing former cricketer Mehli Irani wait for a cab at Bombay Gymkhana, he had asked if I could drop the senior cricketer to Parsee Gymkhana in my car who was in his mid-80s. While we dropped Mehli Irani, Vijay Nayudu refused my request to take him to the station and casually remarked, “Arre main walk karke jaaonga (I will walk and go).” Mind you, he too was into his 70s then. 

 

But for the last year or so, he remained fit throughout his life. In the last conversation that I had with him, his emotional lines were, “I have had my innings now. No regrets.”

Go well Nayudu Uncle, it was indeed one heck of a memorable innings!