Archers par excellence. Dola Banerjee, Deepika Kumari, Rahul Banerjee, Ojas Deotale and Aditi Gopichand Swami had a different set of targets to hit though when they met one fine morning in the courtyard of the Indian Museum on Jawaharlal Nehru Road. The bullseye was a fashion shoot for t2, with fashion designer Abhishek Dutta at the helm of things. For most of them, it was their first fashion shoot. The quintet took only a few minutes to warm to the camera and aced the looks Abhishek put them in. Post-shoot, they sat down for a quick chat on an eventful day, the past, present and future of archery and more.
Rashbehari Das
Q. How was the experience of being part of a fashion shoot?
Rahul: I loved it! Especially because it was with Abhishek and t2 and it was a pleasure. What we wore was superb. I felt like I was in a Matrix film.Deepika: I was nervous, but I did wonder how it’ll all pan out, but it went very well(smiles). Mujhe dress bahut pasand aaya.Aditi: It felt great. The shoot was a unique one and so were the styles... so, there was a lot of enthusiasm while shooting it.Ojas:When make-up started, I thought to myself, ‘Let’s give it a try’. And towards the end, we were giving them ideas that we could try this too. It was a good photo shoot.Dola:I am not much into make-up, but overall, the experience was very good.
Rashbehari Das
Q. Aditi, your hairstyle looked great...
Aditi: I tried something new for the first time and it was great!
Rashbehari Das
Q. What is fashion for you?
Rahul: There was a time when what you wore for a match didn’t hold too much importance, but times have changed. They try new shoes. Even the quivers come in various colours. I like experimenting. Normally, I like black, but I feel sports and fashion are interconnected.
Deepika: I wasn’t conversant in fashion, but I have realised that when you wear good clothes and look at yourself in the mirror, you feel confident. Fashion is important for me now. For a match, it’s usually T-shirt and pants, but I do dress up when I am going out.
Aditi: I feel fashion is outside my syllabus, but when I tried these clothes at the shoot today, I felt, yeah, we too could try these clothes.
Ojas: Fashion is unique for me. Nowadays, I try something funky. I decide what I wear for a match. It has to be something unique ke sab log aapko dekhe.
Dola: Green and black are my favourite colours and I got to wear green and black. When we started, fashion wasn’t really a part of the game or something that we saw our seniors follow. Now, of course, it’s become important and you do pay heed to how you are looking. Now, I do pay attention to what I am wearing while stepping out. You have to adapt to the times.
Rashbehari Das
Q. Dola, coming to archery, with your vast experience, what kind of interest do you see in sports now?
It’s a lot better than when we started. Parents, during our time, used to think twice before enrolling their children into sports, but now everyone wants to play a sport. Otherwise, India wouldn’t have won 107 medals in the Asian Games. And, we have won medals in various games which are not traditional favourites. So, now, parents want their kids to pursue an Olympic sport. An Olympic participation is a huge honour, in itself. Government support has increased.
Archery too is seeing a boost. There is better support which is helping the players choose their training programmes and investing in equipment. These options were far less for us. Investing in equipment meant bearing the entire cost on your own.
Q. Deepika, Ojas, Aditi, how much enthusiasm do you see for archery?
Ojas: When I had started, maine itna kuch dekha nahin tha. Abhi aise hai ke archery ka ek naya level aa gaya hai. Bahut upar tak naam gaya hai and we’ve also been garnering success. There is that recognition and respect. There is a good platform.
Aditi: I have grown up seeing Dola di, Rahul bhaiyya and Deepika di, maine unko hi TV pe dekha and now I play with them. So, it feels great. India is making progress in archery and there is that government support. So, we have the infrastructure.
Deepika: I belong to an in-between generation of players. Back in the days, there was support but itna nahin tha jitna government aur baki companies fund de rahein hai. I wish we too had that kind of support.
A lot has changed and parents are enrolling their kids into sports and the kids too are showing a lot of potential. They are seeing archery as a career option. You see a lot of kids in open trials. Abhi zyada fast ho gaye hai bachche... 16-17 saal mein World Champion ban ke baithe hai (looks at Aditi and smiles). Mujhe lagta hai ek do log ko value bhi pata nahin hogi iski.
Dola: Whoever is at whatever level, they are getting a lot of support.
Deepika: When I was 16, I didn’t have such equipment, but now they have such high-class equipment... there is no dearth of equipment... jis me jitna dam hai, woh utna maar raha hai....
Dola: And the exposure... earlier, it was a big deal to travel once a year...
Deepika: I think a lot will change going ahead too, we might get a World Champion at 12...
Rashbehari Das
Q. What are your dreams for a sportsperson in India right now?
Rahul: I have most of the medals except an Olympic medal. So, either my trainee or I should get an Olympic medal for archery. If we get an Olympic medal, archery will go to another level. The more bench strength we have, the more the chances. Wherever we are is because of archery and it is time to give back to society.
Deepika: From the time I have known the magnitude of an Olympic medal, it’s been a dream to win one. Olympic medal hi chahiye mujhe. Then the medals will flow. The juniors will be motivated to win more medals.
Dola: An Olympic medal will definitely be a benchmark for archery. Like Rahul said, we have achieved everything due to archery and may the next generation achieve more. We have that talent and we also put in that effort.
Ojas: I want to be world number one and also work for a solid foundation for the grassroots players. Archery is a costly game and when I started, I didn’t get that funding. Now that I am getting a bit of funding, I am investing in the future of the kids. I want to set up an academy for the beginners. People know of archery as a sport now. Eight out of 10 homes recognise archery as a game. My life changed within four months, after my win. Aditi and I won on the same day and it was massive. Archery is now an option as a sporting career. Humare jobs assured huye hai government se. My idols are the Indian archers Abhishek (Verma) bhaiyya and Rajat (Chauhan) bhaiyya. And, also Sara didi, Sara Lopez from Colombia.
Aditi: Pehle toh pata bhi nahin hota tha ke yeh koi player hai... but since the time I have won, their perspective has changed. You can get a fair bit of recognition in this sport too. The government is paying attention and the companies are also approaching us. My father introduced me to archery. The equipment was interesting. I started playing in 2016 when I was nine. Compound archery is not a part of Olympics, but I have age on my side and whenever it is included, I’d like to take part in Olympics and get a medal for India. My favourites are Jyothi Surekha (Vennam) and Sara Lopez. She has been in the team for 10-12 years. Unme kuch toh baat hai. I want to follow her.
Q. How do you unwind?
Ojas: I love to dance a lot. I can dance to any song, as long as I feel the vibe.
Aditi: I like watching movies. Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone are my favourites.
Hair and make-up: Abhijit Paul