She was very stubborn about it.
So we signed her up for hockey.
I always used to watch her and learn a lot.
The girls got to learn a lot from Rani.
Rani, please play the first video.
She was thrilled with hockey
when she went to school.
The kids played on an untrodden ground.
In Haryana...
The community and our relatives
opposed to her playing hockey.
They said many things against her.
About how she wore shorts while playing hockey.
Then we stopped her from playing.
She told me, "Mom, I want to play hockey."
I told her that we were poor
and that we couldn't afford to let her play hockey.
We have to live according to the society.
We were against her because we are illiterate
and had no knowledge about hockey.
But she was very stubborn, so we signed her up for hockey.
Today, the very same people
have signed their kids up for hockey.
Yes, it's true that we faced such problems in the beginning.
Earlier we would only worry about having three meals a day.
So signing your child up for hockey was difficult.
The place where I come from, girls aren't allowed
to step out of the house.
So when you come from a family
where your parents are uneducated
it's hard to build trust with them.
Being a girl, I had to set a good example for others
so that other parents don't think twice
about letting their girls play sports.
I was adamant and I feel that you should be adamant in life
because it's not a crime.
Being adamant can take you places in life and...
We didn't have a clock at home
to wake her up on time.
I would look at the stars and wake her up.
I would wake her up at 4:00AM.
And 4:30AM sometimes.
Then I would give her breakfast,
a bath and get her ready.
And then I would drop her off at the ground.
At the school I went to, they would organize
a writing competition where you could win
an alarm clock.
So I used to practice writing.
I used to write for long hours so that I could participate.
I took part in the competition and I won the first place.
I got the alarm clock and I was overjoyed
because my mother could see the time and wake me up.
When she used to come back after playing
her grandfather would come downstairs
and say, "The nuisance is back home."
He always believed that I'd play for the country.
If he was alive, he would be so proud
because he really wanted me to play for the country.
Our coach used to make
those who were overweight to work separately.
We would work with others
but then we would have an additional session.
The coach wouldn't let the overweight students
eat snacks.
He wouldn't let us rest and would make us work.
We would ask other students to sneak in some food for us.
We had to eat before entering the ground
but Rani had carried some food to the ground.
Coach Baldev suddenly asked Rani to hit a reverse shot.
I would try to hide some food and eat it but...
I was taking a shot and the chickpeas
spilled all over the ground
and the coach scolded me a lot
so I never repeated it.
But I couldn't control my hunger.
She came to the Indian camp for the first time in 2007.
She was happy that she was going
to the Indian senior team camp in her first attempt.
But she suffered a back injury.
I suffered a back injury there, because I was underweight
and I was asked to carry heavy weights to build strength.
Carrying heavy weights is what caused my back injury.
I didn't know if I could overcome that injury.
I couldn't get the best treatment
as my family was financially weak.
I started playing hockey again after a year.
And that was the turning point in my life
and I never looked back.
There are two memorable moments in her life
that she discusses with me when she's happy.
One was when India qualified for the Olympics in 2016.
And the second is when she got
the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award.
I remember the winning goal scored in Japan.
Vandana tried scoring a goal but it was a rebound
but Rani finished it so well.
So you can say that it was a lucky goal for us
and that goal qualified us for the Olympics.
That was an emotional moment actually.
It was a memorable tournament
as we qualified for the first time for the Olympics.
It changed things in women's hockey,
a record was broken then.
Now we can think
about getting a medal in the next Olympics.
Because qualifying was important
to break the barrier.
I always learnt a lot from her.
The way she was dedicated
and did everything seriously.
On and off the field.
So I feel proud being with her.
When Rani comes to see us
the girls get really excited.
They say that they get to learn a lot from her.
They say that Rani inspires them.
The chain continues
where I was inspired by someone,
and now I inspire many players
and then someone will get inspired by them.
So I'm happy that girls get inspired by me
and I feel that I've done
something in life to inspire them.
She did face some pressure to achieve something.
I scored a goal for India and won a medal.
So people had high hopes from me.
ARJUNA AWARD 2016
Ultimately, yes, every athlete's goal
is to accomplish the mission.
Like she said, there's always pressure.
I can't say that there's no pressure
just because I'm experienced.
But being a captain, I'm always thinking
how we can improve in the next match.
And what have we learnt from the matches we lost
and how we should improve in the next match.
I think when we represent the flag
we must work hard for it.
The Olympics is the biggest event in sports
and every player, every team
wants to win a medal in the Olympics.
That's the only platform which will stay memorable
because you're an Olympic medalist
and that you've represented your country in the Olympics.
And we all have a wish to do well in Olympics
so that we inspire more girls in the country
to play hockey or get into sports
because that's very important.