Arati Patil's journey from a village athlete to an international para badminton player has not been without its twists and turns. Born with one only arm, Arati considers her disability a blessing in disguise. “If I had both arms, I would not have trained so hard. My disability inspires me to face challenges more fiercely,” she says.
Indeed, she has never allowed her disability to become a hindrance in her pursuit of excellence. Arati was born in Nandgad village in Karnataka. She took to sports when she was not yet a teen --initially as a sprinter before switching to badminton in 2009-10.
The credit for making Arati a self-sufficient and confident individual goes to her mother. “She would not fuss over me unnecessarily. She was a kabaddi player in her school days and knew the importance of sports in shaping a person. She did not allow my disability to limit my ambition to scale new heights,” Arati says.
“I played my first national para tournament in 2010 in Bengaluru, which I lost. From 2015, I concentrated solely on badminton and in 2017, I played my first international event in Japan,” says the 26-year-old sportsperson.
That first
international tournament gave Arati a reality check. “It was a classification tour for categories. The Badminton World
Federation sponsored some expenses, but I had to pay for air fare and collecting
Rs 50,000 for it was difficult. My mother had to mortgage gold, my father took
loans and I made it there somehow,” she remembers.
Badminton is an expensive sport. “A box of shuttlecock is for Rs 3000, a single racquet costs Rs 17,000 and we need six such racquets. Training fees are Rs 20,000 and upward. Diet and physiotherapist’s fees are additional,” Arati points out.
After years of struggle and coming close to giving up her game, individuals and organisations stepped in to boost the gritty youth's morale. Arati, who now trains in Pune, lives in an apartment rent-free, thanks to one of her coaches, Ajay Rawat.
Her fitness coach, Mihir Teranikar, is impressed by Arati’s approach. “Arati is
clear that she doesn’t want sympathy, but opportunities to prove herself. What
she has achieved so far is commendable. The next two years are crucial for her.”
Having lost her chance to play in Paris Olympics by 100 points, Arati is leaving no stone unturned to improve her ranking. That means she has to participate in all important tournaments.
“I missed playing in a few ranking
tournaments due to monetary concerns. I slipped from 6 to 14. But now I have received an annual sponsorship of Rs 10 lakh from Punit Balan Group. I can focus on
my game now.”
She is thankful to her colleagues in the Income Tax department for supporting her. “Soon after my appointment, I participated in a tournament in Uganda, for which I was immediately sanctioned leave. I came back with gold medals in singles, doubles and a bronze in mixed doubles,” she adds proudly.
Arati is inspired by star badminton players like Saina Nehwal and P V Sindhu. Saina had once said to her, “If we get injured, we have to take a break from training/tournaments. But you players are incredible!”
Meeting the former All England Open Badminton champion, P Gopichand is one of her fondest memories. “We were travelling to Switzerland for the World Championship in 2019 and I was lucky enough to get a seat next to Gopichand Sir. That was indeed special. Many players wanted to exchange their seat with me, but Sir said, 'Arati yahin baithegi.’ He also came to watch my matches and would wave at me,” reminisces Arati.
In the future, she would like to start an academy for sportspersons from humble backgrounds. “I know how tough it is for specially- abled players and those from underprivileged families. I have received help in my career, which I would like to extend to others. I would also like to highlight the need of more infrastructure for para players,” she concludes.
(This interview was first published in Dimdima magazine)
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