Atanu Das and Deepika Kumari at their marriage ceremony. (PTI)Marriage to champion archer Deepika Kumari — reckons fellow international Atanu Das — is going to be a whole lot of truth-telling in the coming years. Even bitter truths.
Like how Deepika’s incredible focus — (“She’ll see only the target like in the Arjuna tale,” he says) — has its downsides. That taut concentration, apart from filling her with intense nervousness and dread on the big stage, also means she fails to notice things around the target which matter – “the time left, the flags, the wind. She doesn’t notice any of it,” he says as the two resume their competitive journeys, starting with the national trials.
While completely in awe of the sharp and unwavering focus of the former World No. 1 and World Cup winner, Atanu says the couple trades tips on each other’s strengths. “She’s told me she likes my shooting stance. I keep asking her about what mental framework is needed to be at the top,” he says as the duo wrapped up their training camp at Pune’s Army Sports Institute.
The pair of archers, him 28 and her 26, tied the knot this June after having known each other for 12 years, six of which Atanu is accused by Deepika of having spent “not talking” to her. “Pakki dushmani thi,” she recalls, in a mock scoff. They were batchmates at the Tata Academy in 2008 when they started, but “he didn’t know Hindi then, so wouldn’t talk to me.”
They would continue to shoot in mixed team events and practice alongside but in 2011, they formally fought. “Random, childish fights blew up. Something as small as ‘why did you take my bottle of water?’….” he recalls. Neither knew what had snapped, neither was willing to relent.
2017, they would reconnect, and swiftly fall in love. “2018, we suddenly decided. Quickly families were also informed, so it became a love-cum-arranged marriage,” Deepika says, two years after both went to the Olympics, with the disappointment still raw on certain triggers.
The spotlight of being a precocious talent and pressures of expectation have always unsettled Deepika, rendering her a tad high-strung. Reminding her of previous Olympics – disappointing campaigns after a hyped build-up – still leaves her prickly. “Why do you media want to always compare this with previous times?” she asks. But she’s at peace with all the uncertainty of this year with the pandemic postponing the Games, and her pragmatism has rubbed off on Atanu too.
The self-belief has always been there. The poise and a lightness of being – she laughs out loudly and freely, jokes about her shortcomings when she shoots – is new. “Atanu is very calm and composed as a person, and patient with others. I’m learning that,” she says.
COMEBACK TRAVAILS
The lockdown post marriage, played its part in calming Deepika down. “My in-laws had never tasted pancakes,” Deepika says. “I really admire Bengali food, so I helped in preparations. But I was very happy when they liked the pancakes, pasta and dosa I made for them,” she recalls.
With trials and qualification meets scheduled for May, training had abruptly halted in March. “Olympics got postponed, so we decided we could get married after World Championships. But everything was so uncertain there was no point in long-term plans.”
The lockdown brought its broth of emotions. “We are used to being home for a max week or 10 days. Here we could do nothing and it was frustrating. But at the same time, so many migrants were struggling to reach home and there were tragic deaths. At least, we were safe,” he says.
Not much was achieved in terms of fitness at home then, he confesses, except yoga and meditation. The archery equipment, meanwhile, fell into disuse. “Ghar ka khana thoos thoos ke khaaya. Naturally, standing, shooting capacity and flexibility went for a toss! Soles of the feet and legs hurt the first few weeks when we returned. Back ki band baj jaati hai. Strength issues were big,” she explains.
First came bow-control, something Deepika had never reckoned she’d need to re-learn. “Re-familiarising the body with what shooting feels like took 14 days,” she recalls.
The time would also help her understand the team dynamic, and help her think beyond herself. “We shoot individually but a medal only comes if everyone clicks. Coordination and understanding partners and teammates are necessary. You have to be calm and know everyone’s temperament – some team members are cool under pressure, some are little scared, others are very scared!” she says. “I’ve been all three.”
Atanu paid for his gluttony over six months on return to training. “It was just 3-4 kg excess weight, but it could ruin bow control and there was body pain the first two weeks. 100/200m runs mein haalat kharaab ho jaati thi. When you hold a bow, though poundage and vibration are the same, there’s a break in rhythm and muscles start feeling heavy. Running, flexibility is finished,” he recalls.
Atanu would watch Deepika pick up training pace with her usual single-mindedness and gape at her ability to focus on the sport once again. Like the flick of a switch. He reckons he’s lucky he can learn all about the mental process of climbing back to World No. 1 – he’ll simply ask her. And then brace himself for honest unvarnished feedback on exactly what all is lacking in his effort.