Iqbal VII Cricket Dreams and Childhood Innocence by MF Husain

Husain paints a scene where cricket enters even the space of dreams. A boy lies asleep, his body stretched in exhaustion, showing how practice and effort consume his days. The stumps rise like guardians above him, painted in vivid yellow, with two parrots perched playfully at the top.

The parrots are symbolic of innocence and chatter, echoing childhood energy and the ever-present companionship of hope. At the same time, they suggest how even rest is filled with the noise of aspiration. Above, the cricket ball floats against a deep blue sky, becoming a metaphor for an unending goal, always in sight, never away from thought.

This work reflects how his life revolves around cricket so fully that even in dreams, he continues to play. Husain here turns a child’s passion into poetry, where the boundary between waking and dreaming is erased.