A Maidan regular, Jamuna Das had a chance to watch Messi up close when the Argentine superstar played a match at the Yuba Bharati Krirangan in 2011 but that didn’t waver Jamuna Das’s unfailing alliance to Brazil. So much so that she has stopped watching the FIFA World Cup after her favourite team’s elimination.
Jamuna aka Lozenge didi has had a long association with football. A diehard East Bengal supporter, she can be seen selling candies at almost every derby, and now Indian Super League (ISL) match.
Jamuna Das is a diehard East Bengal supporter and is seen wearing a red-and-yellow sari on big match days East Bengal
So, what happens when East Bengal loses a match? “Buk phate kintu mukhe phote na. (I am heartbroken yet I don’t express myself),” she smiled. On big match days, Jamuna makes sure she wears a sari in red and yellow — East Bengal’s trademark colours. On other days, she often slips on a team jersey over her sari.
Jamuna is heartbroken that her favourites are out of the FIFA World Cup 2022
Jamuna had been following the World Cup matches with great enthusiasm and was heartbroken when her favourites — Brazil and the Netherlands — bowed out. “I have stopped watching the tournament. Though I have seen Messi when he came to Kolkata and was completely overwhelmed, I am still a fan of Brazil. Montai bhenge geche ebar,” she said.
Jamuna had a chance to see Messi live at Salt Lake stadium
From players to linesmen to spectators, she is a familiar face to all. Football matches are not only her means to sustenance, they are her passion too.
Jamuna’s life has been full of struggles. She was just about five when she lost her father. She had to take care of her younger brother and her ailing mother from a very early age. A few years later, her mother passed away too.
Her love for football and the urge to make a living took her to the Maidan, where she started selling candies.
Footballers down the generations know and love ‘Lozenge Didi’
Thirty years on, Lozenge Didi remains a permanent fixture at all football matches played in Kolkata. She not only sells candies but often gifts them to players as a token of love. From Amal Datta and P.K. Banerjee to Bhaichung Bhutia, everyone knows her and loves her.
“Football is my driving force. I have been through a lot of trouble but Maidan has kept me going,” said the 58-year-old. She cherishes her name Lozenge didi the most. “I really love the way people call me. People not only love me but have always taken care of me when needed. They always take care of my wellbeing. When I lost my husband, the people of Maidan — players, fans, everyone — stood by me.” The East Bengal Club even took care of her husband's treatment and also helped her with ration during the lockdown, when she had absolutely no income.
Jamuna’s daily earnings keep varying. “There are days when I take home Rs 1,000 but at times I hardly make anything,” said Jamuna, who is now mostly seen in the VIP gallery. “I have aged, it is difficult to make rounds of the galleries. I cannot carry too much weight.”
In her younger days, Jamuna would also sell candies during rallies and meetings on the Maidan. On one such occasion, she remembers Mamata Banerjee ticking off a man who tried to push her. “Though I have never met her after she became the chief minister, this incident has remained in my heart.”