If you are a fan of basketball, then you know that basketball is more than just the game and the players, but it is a culture. A culture that consists of players, coaches, media, fashion and more. Media has always played a huge part in sports, from player interviews, sideline reporting, and media days it has been the connecting factor of how fans get to know more about the athletes they love. With social media becoming so popular, it is also an outlet for athletes to highlight who they are, express themselves and connect personally with their fans.
When it comes to media, Dhanung Bulsara also known as “D” is the most multi-talented there is. From broadcasting, sideline reporting, creating his own podcast and establishing a videography company, he has done it all. He has worked as the in-game host for the Raptors 905, is currently a co-host for the Toronto Blue Jays, and a sideline reporter for the Canadian Elite Basketball League (CEBL), just to mention a few. You can catch him on your TV and on social media, spreading the infectious vibe and energy he is known for and keeping you entertained.
Tell us about yourself?
My name is Dhanung Bulsara, but everybody knows me as D. I am currently the sideline reporter and digital host for the CEBL. I have the pleasure of hosting CEBL weekly with “S” (Esfandiar Baraheni). Host extraordinaire; I do a lot of hosting for many different platforms. I am also the in-game host for the Toronto Blue Jays, but anyone that knows me, knows that basketball is near and dear to my heart and my ultimate passion.
We see you all over hosting events, on our TV screens, sporting events, etc. Do you ever get nervous?
My mantra has always been that if you’re not nervous, then you’re not ready. My reason is, if you’re not nervous than you don’t really want to excel. I think the reason we get nervous is that we don’t want to disappoint anybody, we want to live up to expectations. Whether that’s expectations that others may have of us, or your own expectations.
Even though I did 81 home games for the Blue Jays, I get nervous before every single game. I could be doing the same thing repeatedly, like CEBL weekly, where if you watch that program, we have a lot of fun and I’m just being myself, but I still get nervous because there’s expectations for S and I as well. I don’t think it’s wrong to be nervous, I certainly do get butterflies in my stomach before anything that I ever do. Even in this interview, because you have expectations of me, we’ve been building up this interview for some time and I don’t want to let you down.
You have accomplished great things and have a very impressive resume. Is there anything else you would still like to add to your resume?
That’s a good question. I often am asked “What’s next” or what’s my ultimate goal and for me, I’ve always hated the question of “What’s your five year plan” because there are so many things that you can’t account for when you’re on this journey, such as a pandemic, or layoffs, etc. For me, I’ve just been so blessed and so lucky that my path and my journey has taken me this far, even though I didn’t have a linear path or blueprint to it. I’ve always had to work hard and put my name out there, my social media and my website, that’s my resume and I intentionally build it that way, so people can seek me out and see what I do, as well as what kind of person I am.
In terms of what’s next and what I haven’t done yet, sky’s the limit for me. I think there’s so many things and I would never say no to opportunities as that’s what led me to where I am now. There’s a lot of opportunities I’ve tried and I realized I liked it more than I thought I would. I have a videography company as well, and people don’t know about that. That’s an itch that I get to scratch directing and working with talent, and with me being a talent, it helps put people at ease and be more comfortable.
In terms of hosting, I would eventually love to get a space where I am hosting a talk show on a regular and I am speaking to athletes and celebrities, more on the fun and lighter side, opposed to the serious. I always likened myself to Ellen, before she was cancelled [Laughs]. Having fun with these people and finding out the lighter side of what they do on the day to day, because for them, they don’t want to be grilled all the time. That’s my personality as well, I’m not trying to dissect who they are or be a psychologist, I just want to know what makes them happy.
I would also like to expand into pop culture. Right now, I’m doing a lot of sports, and I love going to the movies at least once a week, tapping more into that side. I got to work at TIFF (Toronto International Film Festival) one year, and interviewed a bunch of celebrities and I found that to be exhilarating, as that’s a side of me that most people don’t get to see, being a film and pop culture nerd.
Do you ever feel pressure being in the spotlight so often?
Most Definitely. Sideline reporting is a perfect example. I am the eyes and ears on the court for our audience because they don’t have the same level of access that I have. Being in the league as long as I have been, I have also managed to build a relationship where I don’t have to feel shy or intimidated by these players and coaches, and I’m really blessed to be in that position. There is that pressure making sure that I am giving insightful and entertaining information as well, living up to who I am as an individual and as a host.
With the Toronto Blue Jays, my responsibility is keeping people live, up in their seats, going and entertained, so there’s always pressure that comes with the role. You’ve been given this responsibility but also this blessing to get to do this every day. That’s a huge pressure in itself, as I tell people all the time that there is always somebody waiting for you to mess up. Once you mess up, there is a person waiting for the opportunity to be in your shoes, and be in your role. There’s a lot of pressure on myself to maintain that and be consistent, elevating who I am and keeping up with whatever the trends may be. Someone like me, who has grown up in basketball and played sports, I’m so competitive and I’m always pushing myself to be the best version of myself.
How do you manage the expectations that come with success? (Constantly chasing what’s next)
Now that I’m a little bit older, I don’t deal with this as much. I think people have seen me obtain the level of success that I have now, and reach my goals. When I was younger (five or six years ago) people would be like “why don’t you start your own YouTube channel?”, “Why don’t you do this, why don’t you do that?” They have all the ideas, but they don’t understand the level of work that goes into it. I’ve always moved to the beat of my own drum.
For me, I didn’t really crack into the industry until my late 20’s. The problem with social media and everything being online is we always want to compare ourselves to other people. Some people start at 21, some at 23 and if you’re lucky to start that early, that’s great kudos to you, you obviously put yourself in a position to succeed.
I went to school for broadcast Journalism, I had a radio job, which unfortunately did not last that long, and I had nothing to show for it and I was left wondering what was next for me. I ended up bartending for around four years, and I was at the lowest of lows because I knew I had all this potential, I know what I love, I’m really good at it, and I’m not doing it.
Growing up in a South Asian Family, they were like ok you went to school and you have nothing to show for it, we let you take this chance and do broadcast Journalism. They were grooming me to become a Pharmacist, and not only was I not living up to my expectations, I wasn’t living up to theirs. My parents did a lot to come to this country and put me in a position to succeed and do well, and I felt like I was not holding my end of the bargain. That was always really tough, but I think it’s a combination of persistence and patience, being confident that your time will come, but being persistent, putting yourself out there, getting the reps in and making that climb.
I’m self-aware and if I’m not doing well in something, and I know someone can help me out, I’ll certainly seek out their help, but it’s also being stubborn where you want to achieve what you ultimately what to in life and just chipping away at it and having the faith that you’ll eventually get there. The right people in your circle are very important as well, like minded individuals are very important. Everyone looks at the world differently, to some people the world is small, medium or large and I think how you perceive the world, is the kind of people you should be hanging around. Once I started hanging around television personalities, radio personalities, etc. It was cool because now it seemed attainable because if they think they can do it, so can I and let’s work together to get to where we want.
What has been your most memorable interview or event hosted so far?
That’s a great question. The one that pops in mind right away, which is ironic, is Daniel Radcliffe (for those who watch Harry Potter or who are immersed in that Harry Potter world will know)I got to talk with him at TIFF. I’ve never read a Harry Potter book, and I just started watching the movies last year because my wife is obsessed [Laughs]. When I posted the photo, everyone lost their minds and I’m like – I don’t look at him the same way that all of you do but I do recognize his greatness and the impact he’s had culturally.
Some of the most memorable are not necessarily big names. I remember when I started with Raptors 905 hosting the podcast and Justin Champagnie was one of my first guests, which was a big deal to me, getting to talk to someone who was on the Raptors. When it comes to CEBL it’s the guys who helped me when I started to get to the level that I’m at, that have had the most impact. When I get to talk to Ahmed Hill, or Cat Barber, it’s always special for me because those were my first interviews and to see them now as staples in the league, faces of the league, both of them have scored the most amount of points in the CEBL. It’s cool to have been there for the early part of their journey. I’ve talked to Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Antonio Davis, which was a big one for me because I grew up watching that era of Raptor’s basketball, so to talk to him in Niagara was really cool. I know now that I’ve listed some NBA players, I’m definitely missing some, but that’s also a blessing of my work that I’ve been able to talk to so many cool people.
Looking back at your own journey, what’s one piece of wisdom or insight you wish you had known when you were starting out, and what advice would you give to a broadcast journalist just starting out?
I will start with the advice, because it’s always been the same for me and I’ve touched upon it earlier, but it’s the combination of patience and persistence. I think we all, especially coming out of school, want to get our dream job, and the problem with that is, there are only so many of those that are available. For example, many people want to be an in-game host but I’ve been with the Jays for only two seasons, and I don’t plan on giving it up anytime soon. My co-hosts are young so they’ll probably do it for a while. The Raptors in-game hosts have been doing it for a while, as well as the Leafs.
It’s being self-aware that you’re not going to get your dream job out of school and if you’re lucky enough to, all the power to you, make sure you grab the baton and run with it, because as I said, there is going to be somebody waiting for you to mess up or looking for that void to be filled. It’s being patient that your time will come, but also having that persistence. Keep doing your craft to sharpen your skills and get better at it. For me, I wasn’t getting my hosting opportunities and I started my podcast. I wasn’t doing it for the engagement, or for likes, I was doing it for the reps and that I had something to show when I eventually wanted to get the work that I did.
Ironically, enough, CEBL – the Guelph Nighthawks at the time, reached out to me and said they wanted me as an in-game host. They knew that I started my own Podcast and wanted to know if I wanted to do their podcast as well, and of course I said yeah, perfect because I have been doing this for the last four years, creating those opportunities for myself.
The self-awareness part is, if you don’t know or understand something, surround yourself with those that are really good at what they do and get better that way. For me, when I came into the broadcasting world, I had Joe Raso and Jason Thom who are vets in the Canadian Basketball world guide me and help me. Chuck Swirsky I have been able to work with him and watch him from afar and he’s been a great mentor to me as well. Rod Black, Amy Audibert – all these folks and not being shy, and asking questions.
I know there’s the cliché of there’s “no dumb questions” but it’s true. I always say, chase the dream and not the competition. It’s so easy for us to compare ourselves to other people and use them as benchmarks, but as I said I didn’t really get this thing going until 28-29. I had the experience and the personality and all of that stuff, I’m still the same person that I was when I was 18-19, but I didn’t have the experience and it’s a combination of all those things.
If there’s something I could have told my younger self, It would be not being afraid to fail. I think Dwyane Wade had a commercial where he said, “I’ve fallen eight times, but I’ve gotten up nine times.” For me, it’s so easy to see all the great and cool things that I’ve gotten to do, but people don’t see the amount of times that I’ve failed and fallen on my face. Trust me, there’s way more of those than there have been things to celebrate, and that applies to life outside of your career as well.
Last year, I had this accident, where I fell off a ladder and I was out for two months. It should have been longer, but I had to get married. It was just having a positive mindset and being glass half full, and saying that I have to get better. I needed to get back into work and not miss the end of these seasons, but I also have an obligation to get married and be who everyone expects me to be as well at my wedding and not compromising it as well.
I have always been an optimistic person and that’s something I would preach to people, especially in this industry where it’s so easy to get down on yourself with comments. People can be bullies online and whatnot, it all just goes over my head now. I’ve seen it all.
This interview happened because you were persistent and I admire that. I always tell people that I may not be able to hang out with you or talk to you right away, but as long as you keep reminding me, it’s going to happen because I was in your shoes once. My goal in life and the thing that I thrive and get the most out of is helping pay it forward and putting people in the position where their goals become attainable. I have a million kids that reach out to me and say “hey I would love to hang out with you or grab some coffee and shadow you” but they never follow up and to me those are the ones who are not serious, or they’re serious but they’re not aggressive enough in this cut throat business
CEBL weekly, was one of my favourite parts of the CEBL season. I know you do a lot when it comes to the CEBL, what was your favourite part?
To see Niagara win a championship – it was an epic Championship weekend because every game came down to the wire. Montreal was also a great city for it to be hosted in as well. If you had just tuned in during the playoffs, I’m sure we sold a lot of people on the product, especially the target time ending because it lived up to the potential and showed exactly how exciting this league can be and what it’s capable of when it’s at its peak. I have a soft spot for Victor Raso and his staff, as I’ve been covering them from day one of my career. To see how many times they’ve been knocking on the door and come up short of their goals. Since the league’s inception, they have had the overall best record, and most wins, so to see them finally put it together it was great.
The community they have built with that team – A.J Davis, Khalil Ahmad, these guys, coming back and making a commitment with this team. The hardest part about this league is building a team at the beginning of the season, and having the same team at the end of the season due to Summer League, opportunities abroad, and whatever else may call to them. Victor Raso did a great job of helping that team succeed. Once Khalil came back, they absolutely crushed it. To be there, see those players and have that connection, and see them succeed at that level and stage was really cool.
A close second was CEBL weekly. Monday mornings can be a very painful day of the week and everyone hates Sunday nights. For me it was putting my notes together on Sunday, staying up until the wee hours to get my final notes in, and waking up early to drive to Burlington. A lot of people might think that’s got to be a pain, but actually it was a lot of fun putting the show together and having the kind of crew that we did.
Obviously, adding S to the program as well was extremely beneficial and added another layer to the show, which was great because I had to do it by myself before that and I was just a talking head on camera prior to that.
Your job requires you to travel a lot. How do you stay connected with friends and family?
Communication is key. It’s making the effort and as you get older you realize those who you should be putting your energy and time into and making a priority, and who’s going to help you succeed. For me, I need that balance in my life. My life consists of a lot of talking to other people, and a lot of it is between my own ears as well. When you’re a host, you’re constructing and building, and asking yourself what works and what doesn’t work. I have friends that are not consumed into the world and space that I am in work wise, and they help balance me out.
My wife is a perfect example. She works in the Mental Health Space and her job could not be more opposite of what I do, some of the stories that we share after work are comical because mine are out there and outgoing. I dressed up like a hot dog on Loonie Dogs Night [laughs], and my wife as you can imagine deals with some crazy stuff in her workplace. Having that balance. It also is really important that I make the effort to talk and hang out with my friends, but the cool thing is, my friends understand that as much as I am an extrovert in my work, I’m also very introverted, and when I can have quiet space, my favourite days are being home on the couch binge watching TV.
Yesterday with football, I’m on the couch from 1 PM – 11 PM watching football and those are my favourite days of the week, and it’s not because I’m anti-social, but my work is so peer to peer and I have to be on a lot of the time and it can be exhausting. I’m trying to live up to whatever expectations you might have of me and you only have an opportunity to make an impression once and I think that’s really important. With work, you never know what your first impression will lead you to and that’s why with The Toronto Blue Jays and the CEBL, I don’t take any days off because I want to make sure that I’m on all the time. I never know who’s watching that is going to lead to my next opportunity. I never know who’s tuning into their first CEBL game or their first Jay’s game, and you only have that one opportunity to make an impression.
What are your thoughts on how journalism and media has changed over the years?
It’s exciting but it’s also sad. We were talking about how print is dying and that’s kind of a shame, as that’s kind of been the backbone of what I’ve grown up with. I love where media is headed, and I love that we have things like YouTube and that kids can start their own Podcasts and there’s so many ways that you can get into the industry.
For me growing up, we didn’t have that as much and education was so important. These days, I’m not saying that education is not important, but it’s not necessarily the way that you have to get in. However if you don’t have the fundamentals, and the discipline, and I don’t mean this in a negative way, but school is very important. The experience of school and being around like minded individuals where you’re in a program where so many kids want to do the same thing as you, is invigorating and can give you the juice that you need to push.
The only thing I dislike with Journalism right now is I hate that we live in a hot take culture. I love Stephen A Smith and he is good at what he does, but I hate loud talking heads. For me, that is not what I want to be, and I don’ t think that’s what the standard should be for potential hosts, but the problem is, that’s what we’re turning into. I hate that on X everyone is looking for their one hot take that will get them all the engagement and recognition and that shouldn’t be the case. I look at a guy like S who’s putting valuable informative stuff out there and giving great analyses and that is someone who should be popping off, not someone who is looking for all the hot button topics and looking to say borderline stuff.
When you look at Zach Lowe who was just let go by ESPN, he is probably the smartest basketball mind out there when it comes to being an analyst. They give an extension to someone like Kendrick Perkins who again, has great insight and is an NBA champion, but he says things that are going to get clicks and be shared. If you look at every single podcast, I’m looking for X’s and O’s and the smarter side of things, and I’m not looking for someone to give me a hot take. That’s my only fear with the industry. I don’t want a bunch of kids going into school thinking they have to be loud, because then we’re going to lose a lot of kids that are going to school, are super smart, but not as extraverted.
What do you do to unwind and relax?
Anyone who knows me knows that there is no better feeling for me than to go to a matinee during the week, sitting in an empty theatre, have my cell phone off and watching a movie. I think my wife would tell you, I watch way too many movies.
I am still at my age (knock on wood) playing basketball twice a week and I look forward to those nights the most during the week. That is my escape. It also helps my competitive itch as well.
We both appreciate incorporating fun in our interviews, so I’m going to play a quick CEBL Trivia game with you.
Question 1: What CEBL player got their famous nickname from a basketball camp when he was young?
(Answer: Jahvon Blair)
D: Jahvon Blair. I remember this because that was CEBL episode where S interviewed Jahvon
Question 2: If you are told that you have to host a gig in “the ends” what city are you hosting in?
(Answer: Scarborough)
D: Scarborough. I was so scared that this was going to be a trick question. Fun fact, my wife was born in Scarborough too.
Interviewer: If you didn’t get this right, you couldn’t go back there [laughs]
D: That’s what I was about to say! I could never go back [laughs]
Question 3: What CEBL player dropped his own T-shirt line?
(Answer: Ahmed Hill)
D: Your favourite player, Med Hill [Laughs]
If he ever reads this article, I saw him at Championship weekend and I got to wear his shirt for an interview and he was like “I’m going to send you one my guy” and I am still waiting for my T-shirt [laughs]
I want the shirt so I can wear it on CEBL weekly. Nick Ward made his own shirt, we wanted his too.
Question 3: What Honey Badger is originally from Florida?
(Answer: LJ Thorpe)
Interviewer: You can’t mess this up, because they already have beef with you for the power rankings [laughs]
D: Oh My God, I’m scared now.
Oh crap.
Interviewer: [laughs] you were almost four for four
D: Is it Zane?
Interviewer: Nope, sorry
D: Damn, um, I know he’s American, so who else is American on the roster that would be from Florida? I’m totally blanking out here, no idea
Interviewer: Do you give up?
D: I do give up
Interviewer: LJ Thorpe
D: Oh yeah! LJ Thorpe! Dammit. Almost four for four, see I told you I’m competitive [laughs]
Interviewer: So am I, I thought this trivia was too easy
D: I’m trying to look LJ up now [laughs]
Bulsara represents the true definition of destiny. Whenever you experience his energy on TV, social media, at a live game, or event, there is no doubt that he is doing exactly what he is destined to do. His impressive resume is a representation of hard work, believing in yourself, and natural talent. His competitive nature and will to win is what makes him continue to study and master his craft, which shines through in his work as he always tops the last thing that he did. His infectious vibe and natural personality go beyond work. He treats everyone with respect, is determined to provide you with the best experience and thrives on being a great person, while paying it forward. As an icon in our media world, we hope to see him on our screens and at events for many years to come.
