Celebrating empowerment. On International Women’s Day, the Tata Steel Trailblazers sports conclave organised by RevSportz had some special speakers on this. It was not only about celebrating empowerment but also about gaining enlightenment.
Boxing World Champion Nikhat Zareen, hockey stalwart Rani Rampal, Paralympic medallist Rubina Francis, Dr Dipti Kamat, emergency medical consultant and Sagar Daryani, the founder of Wow Momo. The session was conducted by Sharmistha Gooptu.
For Nikhat, it was a difficult start. “Boxing is a male-dominated sport. People said why are you doing this. Who will marry you? My father inspired me and encouraged me to take up boxing. After my gold medal, many parents called up my parents and asked that their daughters want to take up boxing. I ended up inspiring girls from my community. That’s my inspiration.”
For Rani, too, taking up hockey while growing up in Haryana was not easy. Girls didn’t play those days. “Things have changed now. Back then, they would say how can a girl play wearing shorts? It’s different now. Women are leading several sectors. Girls who struggled to make ends meet are sending their children to good schools. We have made a difference.”
For Daryani, things were not easy. He was ridiculed when he started selling momos. “Look, WOW stands for World of Women. We stand by them. Of our 7000 employees, nearly 2500 are women. We also employ transgender individuals. When we started doing that, people threw stones at our outlets. Sports have been a big inspiration. It taught me highs and lows.”
For Rubina, it was difficult to take up shooting, given her disability. But she made an interesting point. According to her, men also play a role in the empowerment of women.
“Parents encouraged me. But my coach also supported me a lot. He is my guru. And gurus don’t have gender. As far as I am concerned, I can say that my coach empowered me.”
For Dr Dipti, too, sports have turned out to be important, although she works in a completely different walk of life.
“Sports brings focus. You lose a match and you come back. We also have tough days. Dealing with death and trauma can affect you. But we get over it and come back. Sports teaches some of that.”