Manilal Gohil, an auto driver in Ahmedabad, had painstakingly saved up for his daughter Mittal's marriage. But both father and daughter ended up shooting down stereotypes once Gohil discovered she had a higher goal in her life.
Mittal (27) is a shooter who has won a bronze medal in the national championship. With the money he had set aside for her wedding, Gohil bought her a German rifle worth Rs 5 lakh. When they recently approached the police commissioner's office to renew the gun licence, cops lauded him for encouraging his daughter to pursue her passion.
Mittal's love for rifles developed early when she saw her grandfather wield a 12-bore gun. It got serious four years ago when her father took her to the rifle club in the city. She tried her hand at shooting and scored well. There was no looking back after that. Until recently, Mittal Gohil used to borrow rifles from other shooters.
In 2013, despite having minimal practice, Mittal participated in the 57th All India National Shooting Championships with a rifle lent to her by Brahma, the brother of renowned shooter Lajja Goswami.
She and her teammates, Lajja Goswami and Anju Sharma, bagged the bronze medal. It was then that Gohil realized that his daughter had the potential and the fire to go further. He and son Jainish began saving money to buy a 50 metre range German firearm, coveted by all established national shooters.
German firearms are known for their accuracy and ease in handling. Mittal's new rifle weighs 8 kg and each bullet costs Rs 31. She has to buy at least 1000 rounds to participate in any tournament. After buying such an expensive rifle, her family now faces the hurdle of purchasing these bullets.
Mittal will use her new rifle for the first time at the upcoming national championship, incidentally being held in Ahmedabad in December 2016.
She has started practising. It's her dream to represent India at the highest level and make her family and nation proud.
No comments:
Post a Comment