Paralympian Deepa Malik recalls 'a lonely journey'

NEW DELHI: When Deepa Malik headed to the

Rio Paralympics

last year, she wasn't thinking about the fact that her cherished dream was coming true. All she was thinking about was clearing her name and proving herself after allegations she cheated her way into the 19-member India squad.

Not just did Malik clear her name, she covered India with glory, winning the shot put silver medal and becoming the only Indian woman to win a medal in the grueling Paralympic Games.

This anecdote Malik related today, at Times Internet Limited's 'Go Limitless' event, captures her true spirit, her worldview and her way of being. It's also a perfect illustrative example of what has made her such a high achiever and a winner - true grit in the face of not just physical odds, but in the face of naysayers who can be the biggest force pulling people down.

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"Keep thoughts positive, exercise your brain with positivity, look for solutions...life is a festival you can and must celebrate every day," Malik said at Times's 'Go Limitless' event in Delhi.

'Go Limitless' is a conversation with high achievers from humble or difficult backgrounds, to help understand what inspires them and keeps them going.

"While people get inspired in their own way and there is no secret recipe, one thing which always helps is meeting people who have defied all odds to achieve something extraordinary from very humble beginnings," is how Times Internet describes the programme.

Of course, Malik has indeed defied all odds and had extraordinary achievements despite her disability that has left her paralysed from the waist down.


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Malik was only six when she was first diagnosed with tumours in the spinal column that left her with no sensation in the lower half of her body. She recovered after surgeries and became an avid sportswoman until her mid-twenties.

"A little before I turned 30, I felt a weakness in the lower limbs. Doctors said the tumour is back with a vengeance. They gave me 10 days to celebrate walking, after which they said they would scoop out the tumour," Malik recalled.

That was not going to stop Malik from pursuing her passion, sport. This was, after all, a woman who married the man who got her a motorcycle.

"Love is blind," joked the articulate Malik, surely meaning that her love for sports is blind.

Read this story in Bengali

In 2010, she moved to Delhi from Maharashtra to seriously pursue her dream of becoming a Paralympian. People thought she "was mad", she recalled.

"There was a lot of lack of faith in me. A lot of people gave up on me. Voluntary help disappeared. They thought I was crazy. It was a very lonely journey," Malik said.

Still, as always, Deepa Malik had the last laugh because fortune favours the brave.

"I was 46 when I won at Rio. At an age when most women were having mid-life crises, I was holding a medal in my hand."


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