Hooglee unmasked at Eden on Saturday. Pabitra Das

Team Kolkata Knight Riders may have lost more matches than they have won, but IPL 3 has been a win-win opportunity all the way for a motley crew of Calcuttans who have hopped on the cricket caravan passing through town.

From a newspaper hawker moonlighting as a bouncer to a dance instructor prancing around in a Hooglee jumpsuit, the cricket-showbiz franchise has spelt a few extra bucks and more for anyone who has something to offer.

“My job as a newspaper hawker earns me Rs 2,000 a month on an average. Here I am paid Rs 5,000 for a week’s work,” said hawker-cum-bouncer Utpal (name changed), one of the many part-timers on the IPL payroll.

Utpal’s job is to play bodyguard to the belles who cheer the Knight Riders during their stay in the city, starting from their arrival at the airport.

For dance instructor Krishnendu Roy and five other boys, match days mean slipping into a tiger suit and turning into the KKR mascot. “It is tough being dressed like this in the heat but we like entertaining the crowd,” he said, head popping out of the Hooglee jumpsuit.

Then there are fringe benefits like getting to watch every match free and wagging his tail at Shah Rukh Khan. “I find this job far more interesting than dancing at awards shows and corporate functions,” said the 26-year-old.

For DJ Kunal Bose, playing to the galleries comes easy but the Eden is a different ballgame. “In a disc, you get three-four minutes to mix a track. Here you have to be on the ball every second, playing the right anthem whenever something happens, which is like six times an over,” said the resident DJ of Venom.

Birbhum boy Samsur Jaman, who turned his back on 40 bigha of farmland to study in the city, has taken a month’s break from classes to sell IPL tickets at South City Mall. His salary? Rs 4,500. Job satisfaction? “I like the work I do,” insisted Samsur.

Eight-year-old Kriti Jain hasn’t earned any money being part of Team IPL but it has brought her fame. Winner of an audition by the official broadcaster, the student of DPS New Town was on air before the Knight Riders-Kings XI match on April 4. “She had to go around interviewing children in malls about IPL,” said proud mother Nilu.