In the quiet neighbourhood of Barrackpore Latbagan, football wasn’t a family tradition for a young 18-year-old boy Samir Balmiki. His father, Rajendra, worked steadily as a school supervisor, and his brother held a private sector job. For the Balmikis, life was stable, and the pitch was just a place kids went to play—not a career path.
But the air in Latbagan is thick with football fever. In 2016, curiosity led a young Samir to the gates of MPFCC, a local coaching camp run by the passionate Prabhat Halder. Even then, Samir’s heart wasn’t fully in it. He trained, he played, but he lacked the “fire” that separates a hobbyist from a professional. That all changed on a thunderous evening in 2022. “I got admitted to our locally famous coaching camp, MPFCC, at Latbagan around 2016. One football-passionate person named Prabhat Halder runs the academy.” Says Samir. He was a privileged boy with no such scarcity of financial struggles in his family, but young boy struggled with the dilemma of choosing football as a profession.
In 2022, Samir went to Salt Lake Stadium to watch an ISL clash between Mohun Bagan Super Giants and NorthEast United FC. As the roar of thousands of fans shook the concrete and the “electrifying” energy of the crowd surged through him, Samir had a moment of pure clarity. “I was so moved by the atmosphere and the fans’ devotion,” Samir recalls. “In that moment, I decided I will pursue football as my career.”
The transition from dreamer to doer wasn’t without hurdles. When he told his father he wanted to pursue the game professionally, Rajendra was understandably anxious. He worried about the stability of a sportsman’s life. But Samir’s boots began to do the talking.
Samir’s entry into mainstream football was nothing short of explosive. He Joins the Fifth Division side Prabhati Utkol, he only saw action in the final four matches of the season. He made them count: two goals and five assists in just four games. That blistering performance caught the eyes of the giants. Suddenly, the boy from Barrackpore was wearing the Mohun Bagan colours for their Under-17 squad in the AIFF Youth League. From there, the momentum didn’t stop. In 2024, he was Recruited by First Division team Rainbow AC. and then by Delhi FC. “I obtained the opportunity to play several matches there at Delhi FC under the guidance of Yan Law, and then I was roped in by Kalighat MS, the Premier Division team last year,” says Samir.
Despite training under elite coaches like Bastav Roy and Shaheed Raman, Samir’s heart remains tied to his roots. He credits Subrata Sir at MPFCC for more than just technical drills. “He taught me the psychological part of the game,” Samir says. “Whatever I know about the midfield, I owe to him.”
Today, the 18-year-old is a rising star for JHR Royal City FC, Malda, in the BSL. While he naturally gravitates toward the “Rodri role”—a defensive central midfielder who dictates the tempo like his idol, Manchester City’s Rodrigo Hernandez—he is currently flourishing as a wing-half.
He isn’t just playing for the stats; he’s playing for the growth. He views the BSL as the perfect crucible to forge his future. As his father watches from the stands with a proud smile, the boy who once had no football background is now drafting a legacy of his own, one cross and one assist at a time.
