Namaste Geezer author Shekhar Bhatia discusses life as a West Ham fan

Lifelong Hammer Shekhar Bhatia, a Daily Mail global journalist, tells his experiences of supporting the club in his book Namaste Geezer.

Shekhar’s father arrived from India in the late 1950s, raising him in Leytonstone and forming his love for the Hammers from an early age.

Namaste Geezer recounts Shekhar's experiences as an ethnic minority West Ham fan (Image: Shekhar Bhatia) Shekhar addresses his experiences as a fan, both positive and negative, racism in wider football and more in an extensive interview with this paper.

“My dad used to take me to West Ham as a boy," Shekhar said. "There weren’t many Asians or people of colour who would go to West Ham then.

“My first memory of going to watch football is quite a cold one. During the walk to the stadium, we would pass the National Front where they used to sell their bulldog newspaper outside and they used to hiss and snarl at us, giving us dirty looks.

“My dad was bigger and brighter than them though. We have always fought for our rights within social compatibility and laws.”

Shekhar remains a season ticket holder to this day, in the Billy Bonds stand at the London Stadium.

Having witnessed changes to the club’s landscape across his time as a fan, Shekhar still believes more needs to be done for Asian supporters.

“I am very disappointed with the turnout in the stands still. I’d say it's not even 1 per cent people of colour going to West Ham.

“We’ve still got a long way to go but I do know the club is reaching out to the Asian community across east London.

“Mark Noble has been brilliant, a former club captain and now an official at West Ham. He’s been talking about it and doing what he can to bring more Asian people in.

“There’s a long way to go but West Ham are making the right noises. Maybe they just need to make them louder.”

Shekhar says "99.99pc" of West Ham fans welcome Asian supporters.

“I want to say that West Ham fans have been largely brilliant with me. When I was a boy, they used to carry me on their shoulders and put me to the front so I could see the game.

“If I didn’t have a ticket for a cup match, people would come up to me and give me a ticket outside the ground. And these were working class, honest white guys who clearly didn’t see colour.”

Namaste Geezer by Shekhar Bhatia (Image: Shekhar Bhatia) Shekhar’s book, Namaste Geezer, was released in May this year.

“I don’t want the book to be all about racism or me being a victim, because I’m not a victim. I want it to be a celebration.

“I’m just trying to tell my story. My story is different from a lot of West Ham fans.”

Shekhar wanted the book title to combine his ethnicity with his Cockneyism.

“Namaste is a south Asian greeting, literally meaning, ‘The light in me sees the light in you’, and Geezer is of course a friendly Cockney term of endearment.”

The story has already reached into the West Ham community with recognisable Hammers fans such as Bill Gardner and Chris ‘Knollsy’ Knolls attending the official book launch.

Bill, who has also written books about his experiences, was head of the Inter City Firm in the 1970s and developed a reputation as one of the country's most notorious football fans.

A coincidental meeting between Shekhar and Bill in Smithfield Hall, a West Ham pub in New York, sparked a surprise friendship.

“I actually used to hide from him as a boy," Shekhar said. "But Bill and I have actually become friends.

“I said to him ‘your people actually made my life a misery, I was very scared of you'.

“He said, ‘Look I never hit anyone because of their colour, I never hit another West Ham fan and I never kicked anybody when they’re down.’”

“I’m actually hoping to do a question and answer with him somewhere in Romford in the new year."

Despite Shekhar praising the hospitality of West Ham fans over the years, he was keen to recognise the prevalence of racism across the world of football still today.

“Social media has worsened racism recently. You can’t help reading things on your phone and laptop. It’s stopping people coming through the turnstiles.

“I’ve spoken to a mate of mine at Kick It Out and he can’t put his finger on why there are so few Asian players and fans in the Premier League."

Shekhar and his ex-wife Meera Syal, who he says has never returned to football after witnessing racial abuse at a game in the 90s (Image: Shekhar Bhatia) Shekhar recalled taking his ex-wife, actress Meera Syal, to a match in the 1990s, where they witnessed racist abuse towards a black player. He said she has never been back to football since.

“If she can be put off, how many other people of ethnic origin can be put off?

“I worry even now sometimes being the only Asian person in my line of seats. If things turn out badly, are people going to turn on me?

“I don’t expect that to happen because only 0.01pc of West Ham fans are like that. But it’s still a worry at the back of my mind.

“I’m not scared of anyone though. I just have to hold my rights and do what I want.”