Q&A: I forgot that I'm disabled'

Call her a specially-abled athlete who became India’s first woman to win a Paralympic medal last week, or a 45-year-old mother of two with extraordinary grit and determination, but Deepa Malik’s life and tale is much more than all of this. Life has thrown many hardships to this Gurgaon-based, self-confessed adrenaline junkie and Deepa has come on top every single time. She is a rider, a biker, a swimmer, a javelin and shotput thrower and a motivational speaker, but there is a catch to all of it. Deepa is confined to a wheelchair, but hasn’t let that dampen her spirit or dreams. Last week, Deepa recorded her personal best time with a throw of 4.61 metres in the shot put event at the Rio Paralympic Games, making her way into limelight and bringing focus on para-athletes in the country. In an interview with Harpreet Kaur Lamba, she talks about her life, struggles, achievement and much more. Excerpts:

2016 seems to be the year of women athletes in India. First, it was Sakshi Malik, P.V. Sindhu and Dipa Karmakar at the Rio Olympics and now your silver medal has made the country proud. How big a moment is this for you?

It’s quite a paradox, isn’t it? The state of Haryana has the lowest male-female ratio and people say there is no support for women athletes, yet Sakshi and myself are from Haryana. I think as a nation we are changing and that is the biggest positive. I feel overwhelmed, content and extremely happy. I might be disabled, but this love and applause makes me feel no less today. I think I have forgotten that I am disabled! This medal truly belongs to my country.

It wouldn’t have been so easy though when it all started… The pain, the surgeries and then being confined to a wheel chair after having lived your life as a healthy person for close to 29 years. Tell us about your journey.

My first stint of disability was when I was 6-7 years of age and the doctors detected tumours near my spinal cord. I was not able to move my lower body and had to undergo a surgery. After three years of rehabilitation, I was able to walk again. Slowly, I forgot about all this and lived my teen years with a lot of enthusiasm. I was into fashion and won a beauty contest. I played cricket and basketball. Soon, I was married and the only reason to get married at a young age was because my husband supported my love for outdoor sport and even promised me a bike!

In a way, I think it’s destiny and a way to give back to my country because my daughter Devika, who was born in 1990, also had paralysis on the left side of her body when she was an year and two months old. Today, she too is a para-athlete and has won a couple of medals at the international level. My paralysis too returned a few years later.

Did you ever lose hope all this while, especially having seen your child go through the same amount of pain?

It was kind of sad because I felt my childhood was the same and I had overcome it, so why this repeat of disability on my child. We did a lot of rehabilitation for Devika and thankfully, I was doing fine at that time to take care of her, before paralysis struck me again in 1999. I underwent two surgeries and this time even after those, I could not get back to walking.

What kept you going at that time?

While all this was happening, my husband was fighting the Kargil war. I did not see him during a long period and even during my treatment at the Army hospital he could not visit me. There were a lot of soldiers admitted there and they underwent surgeries. and some even lost their body parts due to bullet injuries. Yet, they were happy that they could do all this for their country. It was very inspiring. I decided I could not take pity on myself. Also, I was a mother and did not know when or if my husband would return from the Kargil war. My daughters needed me.

What was your first thought after returning home from the hospital?

I first got into a restaurant business that involved underprivileged children whom I provided education and job opportunities.

So, how did you become a sportsperson?

I wanted to be back on the bikes and cars and feel that thrill again. Slowly through Internet, I learnt about hand-controlled vehicles and competitions for people with disability. I got into swimming too and my journey into the world of para-sport began at the age of 36. I learnt athletics too. Soon, I begun to win medals.

What was the reaction of your husband Bikram Singh all this while?
A lot of people ask me if my husband allows me to do all this… be a sport junkie and do so many different sport and travel. I think I do not associate with this word allow. It has never been a part of our family. It might be prevalent in Indian society, but my husband’s greatest contribution has been to support me in whatever I do. I took all my decisions and made my plans and he ensured all of them were fulfilled. For Paralympics, I trained for close to four hours every day and my husband — now retired from Army — gave up his private job to become my skills coach.

People in general are not very encouraging towards disabled people. Did you go through a tough time too?

Yes many times. It took me 19 months to get a driving licence (for modified vehicles), because there were no such rules for disabled people. I am the first person ever in India to get such a licence.

What next for Deepa Malik?

I am not going to stop and want to tell everyone out there to keep dreaming.