A group of girls, mostly students, can be seen fighting for the ball every evening on the Pune University ground. They tackle each other mercilessly, giving way to their natural aggression and competitive spirit. No matter how hard the knocks, they’ll go on playing the sport they love. The players are after all, part of the elite Indian rugby women’s team.
Pune sportswomen are changing the way people perceive them and the misconceptions of their sport.
Like the city girls who are pioneers of women’s rugby, Anisa Sayyed vindicated women’s rifle shooting by winning two gold medals in the Commonwealth Games. She believes shooting is a sport for women, who with their mental strength can emerge on top and lay claim to all the medals.
Captain of the Indian women’s rugby team, Surabhi Date, says, “The game has taught me team spirit and also to never quit, whether on the field, or in life.”
The mild-mannered 19-year-old BA student learnt to bring out her innate aggression on the field and bonded in the rugby spirit with her teammates.
They are now an inspiration to other girls, who look up to them on the field and realise that girls can be tough too.
“Girls pick up faster, practise harder and are in general, more sincere,” adds Gani Shaikh, secretary of the Pune District Rifle Association (PDRA), accounting for the success of women’s shooting in competitions.
They have had more than 200 girls signing up for training in 2010 alone, once the parents have realised it is a safe sport that girls can excel in.
Similarly, the negative connotations of boxing as a sport are slowly, but surely fading away, thanks to highlighted triumphs of boxers like Mary Kom and Vijender Kumar.
Pune City Boxing Association’s Madan Vani believes, “Boxing is not a cruel sport as most people think. It involves skill,
tactics and mental strength.”
Mental strength is the word that echoes among all coaches and women players.
The sports that are not normally associated with the fair sex are the ones that need greater mental toughness than
physical.
Surhud Khare of Khare’s Football and Rugby Academy (KFANDRA) that initiated rugby in the city stipulates similar training for boys and girls.
But Khare claims, “Indian women have a lot of resilience. They just need to bring out the warrior in them and channelise their inner aggression in sports.”
At just 14, boxer Chanda Udanshive has two gold medals in the national games to her credit. Admitting that she had to be strong when she first started training, Chanda says, “I had to overcome my fear of getting hurt. And now sparring has become a habit so I never worry about getting injured.”
Her mother Mala had no such fears since she trusted and supported her daughter whole-heartedly. Her choice of sports and uniform of shorts was not a problem for our family or anyone in the neighbourhood.
“She always wears shorts so everyone is used to it. And now everything is changing, people are very supportive and we are all proud of her,” the doting mother says.
In her sport, Anisa explains the scenario is definitely undergoing a transformation. From poor ranges and scarce equipment that she had to make do while training, nowadays the city women shooters are better prepared and equipped and have the prospect of new ranges. It may be her achievements that have led to this change.
“Now people are accepting sportswomen and even after marriage, they don’t have to sit at home as their families support them. Given a chance and the proper facilities, women can soar high and do everything they set their mind on,” she says.
