Indian hockey captain Rani Rampal with her father Rampal (also on the cart); Baldev Singh

SHAHABAD MARKANDA (KURUKSHETRA): Hockey captain Rani Rampal ’s father stopped selling bricks on a horse cart in 2015. However, he has kept the cart outside their swanky residence in Shahabad Markanda town of Haryana’s Kurukshetra district as a reminder of his changing fortunes due to his daughter’s brilliance on the hockey turf.

After Rani helped India win a bronze in the Junior Women’s Hockey World Cup in 2013, her father Rampal and the rest of her family moved from a small thatched cottage to a posh double-storey building in the same town.

Rani, who made her debut at 15, is now captain of the national senior women’s team and will be leading the side in the Asian Games. Their residence has every possible modern amenity and is instantly recognizable by the five Olympic rings at top

of the building. Rani lives there with her parents, two brothers — one of them is a carpenter and the other a mechanic — and their wives and children.

However, Rampal doesn’t want to do away with the cart and Rani doesn’t force him to either. “The cart reminds us both of the hardships that we had to go through, of the sufferings we had to endure to make Rani what she is today. It keeps us grounded,” says Rampal.

“I used to take bricks from one place to another on my horse cart. There were days when I earned just Rs 4 or 5. It was very difficult to provide my family one meal a day — forget about three. My wife and I not only saved money bit by bit, but we also used to save food because nobody knew what was in store the next day,” recollects Rani’s teary-eyed father.

Shahabad is one of the hubs of Indian hockey. The small town has produced several players who have represented India, including former national women’s team captain Ritu Rani and dragflicker Sandeep Singh. Other hockey internationals like Suman Bala , Sandeep Kaur, Rajni Bala and Surinder Kaur are also from Shahabad, also known as Sansarpur of Indian women’s hockey.

Credit for Shahbad’s rise should go to Baldev Singh

A lot of credit for Shahabad’s rise as the focal point of Indian women’s hockey should go to Baldev Singh — the former coach of Shahabad Hockey Academy (SHA).

Quite naturally, Rani had a profound interest in hockey and she picked up a hockey stick when she was 7.

“Initially, my parents didn’t agree to the idea of me playing hockey. Our neighbours and relatives told my parents that I would bring bad name to the family because I would be wearing a skirt or shorts. It was very difficult to make them understand. But I kept on pestering and cried a lot and emotionally blackmailed them after which they relented and allowed me to play hockey,” says Rani.

“Now the same people, say, ‘We are so proud of Rani’ and send their children to play hockey,” she added.

“If I made one good decision in my life, it was to allow Rani to play hockey,” Rampal chips in proudly.

Rani says she is truly indebted to coach Baldev Singh, who not only trained her, but also helped her a lot off the turf.

He bought her kits, jerseys, equipment, and helped with her dietary requirements.

“At times, I did think about quitting hockey because of our poverty, but Baldev sir helped me a lot,” says Rani.

“He is very proud now. Whatever I am today is because of him. He worked so hard for me. He is like god to me,” she added.

