She and her sisters were constantly reminded that they were women in a man’s world. But that did not deter their confidence because of the strong support from the man of their family. In their growing years, one question they repeatedly faced was, “Who would marry you?” The face of women’s wrestling in India, Geeta Phogat, who is all set to marry fellow wrestler Pawan Kumar this month, talks about her excitement, anticipation, priorities, films and more.
On marriage
With wedding preparations on in full swing, Geeta shares that she hardly gets time to rest these days. “The wedding is just around the corner (November 20) and there are a lot many things yet to me done. But I am not worried. I am focusing my energy on my training. My family and friends are taking care of the arrangements. I have full faith in their choices,” expresses Geeta, who won India’s first ever gold in women’s wrestling (in the 55 kg freestyle category) at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi.
She adds, “Even my wedding lehenga has been selected by my best friend. She has bought a beautiful lehenga for me created by Bengaluru-based designer Miraj and I am really excited about it.”
Love for the sport
She still tries to train for at least eight hours a day. “Though I am getting married I am focused on my training. Wrestling will always be my top priority. Currently, I am focusing on 2018 World Wrestling Championship and 2020 Olympics.”
Talking about her love for the sport, Geeta points out that she did not choose wrestling but took it up because of her father’s (Mahavir Singh Phogat) persistence. She shares, “It was my father’s passion actually. I had never wished to become a wrestler. I was 12 when my father initiated me into this sport. Gradually, I started liking it and then it became my passion too.”
Geeta, who was raised in rustic surroundings in Haryana’s Bhiwani district, adds, “I have seen my father defying societal norms and investing his time and energy on us. He was ridiculed and criticised by the community for asking girls to seek a career in wrestling. But he had vision and was least worried when elders warned him his daughters would not find grooms. I had to wrestle for him and that motivated me tremendously. I had to win for him.”
On Dangal
Geeta is all smiles about the Aamir Khan-starrer Dangal based on her father’s life which is set to release next month. “Nitesh Tiwari (director of the film) has been working on the film since 2010. He visited our family numerous times and spent many hours with my father to understand and capture the true story. That was when we did not even know Aamir Khan would be portraying my father on screen. I remember Aamir once saying that he was initially apprehensive about playing the part of a man with four daughters, but the story was so compelling that he did not want to let go of it and eventually agreed to do the film.”
Aamir Khan will also be attending her wedding. Talking about him, Geeta says, “Aamir is a wonderful human being. In between the shooting he used to always find time to meet my father. and he is a most humble person despite being one of the biggest stars of Bollywood. I am deeply touched that he has agreed to grace my wedding with his presence.”
Opportunity for women wrestlers
With the recent bronze medal win by Sakshi Malik at the Rio Olympics, the Indian women’s team has garnered the right kind of attention, shares Geeta. She adds, “Before Babita and my win at the CommonWealth Games, nobody used to take Indian women wrestlers seriously. But, in last few years, a number of wrestling institutes have opened especially for girls and parents are keen on getting their daughters enrolled. Now there are more opportunities. I remember during our early years we had to wrestle against boys because there were no girls to train with.”
Future plans
Geeta is all set to devote long hours to training soon after her wedding. “Currently, my aim is to represent my country in numerous sporting events and get as many medals as possible. Even after the wedding, I will be training for atleast eight to nine hours a day along with Pawan at his training centre.”
