Palwankar Baloo Age, Death, Wife, Caste, Children, Family, Biography & More

Bio/Wiki
Full Name	Babaji Palwankar Baloo
Profession	Cricketer (Bowler)
Physical Stats & More
Height (approx.)	in centimeters- 180 cm in meters- 1.80 m in feet inches- 5’ 11”
Weight (approx.)	in kilograms- 75 kg in pounds- 165 lbs
Eye Colour	Black
Hair Colour	Black
Cricket
Debut	On 8 February 1906 Hindus v Europeans (First Class)
Team(s)	Hindus (1905-1921), Maharaja of Patiala's All India Team
Bowling Style	Left-arm orthodox spin
Personal Life
Date of Birth	19 March 1876
Birthplace	Dharwad, Karnataka, India
Date of Death	4 July 1955
Place of Death	Bombay (Mumbai), India
Age (at the time of death)	79
Zodiac sign/Sun sign	Pisces
Nationality	Indian
Hometown	Poona (Pune), Maharashtra
School	Not Known
Educational Qualification	Not Known
Religion	Hinduism
Caste	Dalit
Relationships & More
Marital Status	Married
Family
Wife/Spouse	Name Not Known
Children	Son- YB Palwankar Daughter- None
Parents	Names Not Known
Siblings	Brothers- • Babaji Palwankar Shivram (Cricketer) • Palwankar Ganpat (Cricketer) • Palwankar Vithal (Cricketer) Sister- None

Some Lesser Known Facts About Palwankar Baloo

His father worked in the army, and he either worked as a sepoy in the 112th Infantry Regiment or worked in an ammunition factory in Kirkee.

He got his first job of tending the pitch at a cricket club for Parsis in Pune (then Poona). He earned ₹3 a month.

In 1892, he moved to the cricket club for Europeans, The Poona Club, where he erected the practice nets, rolled and swept the pitch and occasionally marked the tennis courts.
Palwankar Baloo with his team at the Poona Gym

Mr. Tross, one of the Europeans, encouraged him to bowl at the nets. His slow-left-arm bowling impressed many, Captain J.G. Greig, in particular. It is believed that Grieg used to give him eight annas every time Baloo dismissed him.

He bowled a lot in the nets but was never given the opportunity to bat as at the time batting was considered as preserved for the aristocratic class.

Baloo belonged to Dalit caste and hence was not given an opportunity to play for the Hindus’ team though, after his impressive performances, it became tough for the selectors not to select him.
Palwankar Baloo with the Maharaja of Patiala’s All India Team

He played for the Hindu side in the all so famous 1906 and 1907 matches against the Europeans of the Bombay Gymkhana. The Hindus defeated the Europeans by 109 and 238 runs respectively.

He took 114 wickets on to tour to England in 1911 at an average of 18.84.
Palwankar Baloo with the team in 1911

He faced a lot of trouble due to his caste and was in and out of the team.
Palwankar Baloo with the All India Team

All his three brothers were cricketers and his brother, Palwankar Vithal had also been the captain of the Hindu team and achieved great success.

He also was a good friend of another famous Dalit, B. R. Ambedkar. Though over the years, a rift became evident between the two over the way of abolishing caste system in India.

Late in his career, he joined politics and was a staunch supporter of Gandhian ideas and also supported Mahatma Gandhi’s efforts to bring Home Rule to India.

In October 1933, he unsuccessfully contested for the Bombay Municipality seat, on the Hindu Mahasabha ticket.

In 1937, Baloo contested for the “Scheduled Caste” seat in the Bombay Legislative Assembly against B. R. Ambedkar, to whom he lost by the close margin of 13,245 to 11,225 votes.

From 1905/06 to 1920/21, he took 179 wickets at an average of 15.21 and also became the First Indian Dalit cricketer.

In 2018, a biopic on him was announced, produced by Priti Sinha and directed by Tigmanshu Dhulia. On this, Tigmanshu said,

I prefer telling stories about unsung heroes. Like Paan Singh, Baloo Palwankar too is unknown outside cricketing circle. His story is the story of India and what better backdrop to have than cricket.