I have fought to live since childhood. Even when I was a child, I began suffering from sometjing that doctors could not identify, and they told my parents that I was about to die. From nowhere, a wandering saint crossed our paths and gave me some medicine that cured me. Up until that i never believed in miracles.
When I was in class 5, I took up basketball. A few boys in my class were exceptional with their basketball skills, so that inspired me to try my hand at the game. In Class 6, I was a boarder in the school, and after my classes, I had all the time to hone my skills in the game. Our school has several divisions according to how well a child plays. As a beginner, I was put in the C-division, but the hunger to always be the best made me utilise all my free time in practice. Within one year, the coach saw my improvement and made me the vice-captain for A-division, in which all the top players of the school played. But life had more challenges in store for me! We would have coaches from the East Indian Railway, and they would train us for Anglo-Indian Tournaments.
I Did Not Want To Give Up On Sports As A Career
In 2015, I met with an accident and broke my spine. My life was limited to a wheelchair, and my life as basketballer would flash in front of me. It took me three years to make my mind stable and think that this was not the end of the world for me. I used to think I would never be okay. Since I had decided on a career in sports from a young age, I did not want to give up on that. Initially, after the accident, I took to athletics, but I was not good enough. I went to Delhi to practice in the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, where all senior athletes practice.
‘I Am Going To Open My Own Association’
That was when I thought that I should go back to what I was good at. I went to the Indian Institute of Spinal Injuries, and they had a basketball court. My first shot did not even go through the ring, and the subsequent shots, thankfully, all went in. Then I went home and searched for Delhi State Wheelchair Basketball Association (DSWBA), and they gave me several opportunities like performing in the Parliament House. Then, I slowly started getting some recognition, playing for the Indo-Nepal tournament and several other places where we would play across India.
Now, I am a full-time basketball player and will open my own association in West Bengal because there is no such facility for the specially-abled. Here, people barely promote disability. Most people would be depressed, and I want them to do good for their lives and be happy.
If you too have an inspiring story to tell the world, send us your story at mystory@thelogicalindian.com
