Daughters of India at Rio Olympics

I received the below post via WhatsApp. I have later on come to know that this wonderful post was written by Rachita Prasad on her Facebook timeline. I am copying it here to salute all the Indian women athletes who participated in the Olympics in Rio. Some of them won medals while a few of them missed it by whiskers. But all of them won hearts of billions.

They defeated the ultrasound that declared ‘it’ was a ‘she’.
They defeated the nurse declaring in a sombre tone “ladki hai (it’s a girl).“
They defeated murderous parents or even worse those who keep them alive but kill their spirit every single day.
They defeated the odds against them for parents “allowing” her to chase her dream.
They defeated the family pride that wants every Indian child to be a doctor or engineer.
They defeated the school teacher who said “it’s not a girl’s game”.
They defeated bad sports infrastructure and even lack of healthy food needed to fuel the fire.
They defeated a system where overweight foreign travelling officials, who have only played Ludo as a sports, decide her fate.
They defeated the Dada-Nana, who told her “good girls don’t wear short clothes”.
They defeated the Dadi-Nani, who told her not to play in sun and become “kaali-kaluthi (dark-skinned girl)”.
They defeated friends who told her she needs to “control aggression and chill.”
They defeated the pados-waali (neighbouring) Aunty ji who wondered “akele kahan-kahan ghumti hai aapki ladki. (your daughter goes around alone here and there)”
They defeated the million eyes staring at her legs and not noticing the brilliant game she played.
They defeated the Bua jee and Mausi jee, who ask “tum shadi lab karogi? (when will you marry?)”
They defeated the journalist who asked her when she would “settle”.
They defeated the cynics who thought they were pouting and clicking selfies on a fully paid foreign trip.
So dare not take even a slice of her glory by calling her HUMARI BETI!
They have achieved what they have not because of us. But despite us!

Dipa, Sakshi and Sindhu have become national idols in a cricket-crazy nation. Over a billion Indians glued to TV to watch them performing and praying for their win for the sports which never evoked much interest in the country. Clearly, women athletes are creating history. Indian women have indeed come a long way in sports since Nilima Ghose and Mary D’Souza, two athletes, joined the contingent in the 1952 Helsinki Olympics.

Hats off to Dipa, Sakshi, Sindhu, Babita, Adity and all other sportswomen who competed with international champions and gave their best. Winning is not everything, but fighting tough is!