HANS' down, a winner

Gurinder Chadha, director of the cult film Bend it Like Beckham liked this Delhi girl’s adventurous journey so much — that she thought it would be fitting to have her as the poster girl for the film’s musical! Such has been the fairytale story of Tanvie Hans. After learning that she wouldn’t be eligible to play for India — as she holds a British passport — the 26-year-old footballer decided to move to England in order to pursue her dream. Tanvie went on to play for two famous clubs in UK — Tottenham Hotspur Ladies FC and Fulham Ladies FC. After a successful three year-stint abroad, she is currently based in India, playing for Delhi club Sudeva Moonlight.

In a candid conversation, Tanvie speaks about how she’s still longing to represent the country, the challenges she faced in her career and more, “I have always been sporty and naturally athletic. This led me to becoming sports captain in junior and senior school, and playing multiple sports — including football,” starts Tanvie, adding, “To be honest, I didn’t grow up watching football. But in our school, it was a big deal, and we would gather to watch the boys in action! When I watched an inter-house boys competition at school, I absolutely loved the pace and intensity, almost instantly.” Though she never decided on pursuing football as a profession, the 26-year-old began to progress as a footballer ever since she joined a local academy, Eves Soccer Academy, in Delhi, and then went on to represent her college team.

“I used to play various sports with my older brother and his friends in the park behind my house when I was young,” says Tanvie. Born in Punjab, she schooled at Vasant Valley School and did her under-graduation at Jesus And Mary College, in Delhi. What made her move to the UK? “In 2008, I was called for the U-19 Indian camp. But, after making it through, I was told that I wouldn’t be able to play for India due to my British passport — so I continued to play at whatever level I could. Then in 2011-12, I went for my masters to England — where I played for my university team. I loved the standard and set-up for women! When I returned, I knew I couldn’t go on to play for the country… so I decided to go back to London and try out for clubs. I researched, found out dates of the open trials for a few clubs, and dropped emails to let them know I’d be flying in for the same,” she adds.

Tanvie HansShe was then selected for English club Tottenham Hotspur Ladies’ trial and evolved as a footballer during her two-year stint with them. “I played two seasons with Spurs Ladies. I started with a lot of potential; then they narrowed me down to the list of the top 30 players. As time went on, they realised (and so did I) that I was athletic, and I had all the required set of skills — but wasn’t experienced. And this showed through my decision-making on the field. Coming from India, I hadn’t had a lot of 11-a-side match experiences, and though I was already 23 at the time, I was playing with girls as young as 16 years, who had much more match experience! So I played for the reserve team in my first season with Tottenham, and I think I did fairly well on the wings,” Tanvie recalls.

“In my second season, I saw a massive influx of the club’s academy girls come through and many established players from other clubs keen on joining Spurs Ladies. A lot of us from the reserve team were dropped to development (or third team). I was on the development team, but I can’t complain — I got a lot of match practice and minutes under my belt, and more confidence on the ball. I grew as a player,” she adds. Of the prominent players she met during her stay at the club, she says, “The famous stars were women from the Spurs ladies team itself. I got the opportunity to play and train with Shannon Maloney and Wendy Martin.”

She then went on to play for Fulham Ladies FC. Here, she played for the first team, making solid contributions by scoring and assisting goals. “When I trialed for the club, it was only two-years-old, and being a new club, it had to play at a slightly lower league than the Women’s Premier League. This wasn’t an issue as the club set-up was very professional. I knew this team had the potential to perform well and move up the leagues. After my trials, I was shortlisted for the reserve team. I did very well and the coach felt that the level was too easy for me; I moved up to the first team in just a few weeks. Around the middle of the season, I became a starter for the first team. To me, that is one of my biggest accomplishments,” recalls the winger.

She feels all wingers need to have some basic attributes — speed, dribbling, shooting, crossing, and confidence. Personally, she enjoys play-making too. “The three-year stay in UK has opened my mind, taught me to play creatively. I enjoy coming out of position sometimes, cutting into the middle from my wing, and making the ball for the opposite wing or our striker, or playing a one-two with the central midfielder and attacking through the middle,” she quips.  The youngster, who was part of the viral Nike campaign ‘Da Da Ding’, is also a crusader for fitness among women — her social media profiles pay just tribute to her intense workout.

Currently in India, she is undertaking a lot of other initiatives — “I am working with an organisation called ‘Just For Kicks’, which encourages sports in the curriculum of underprivileged schools by organising tournaments, trainings camps and opportunities to go abroad to play. I also started the GiftOfFootball hashtag a while ago, wherein you gift a football to any kid on the street or underprivileged school, who truly values it and uses it well,” she adds. Tanvie hopes to play for India in the future, “I have been waiting for the law to change since 2008 in favour of dual-citizenship so I can play for India, or at least get a chance. But circumstances have said otherwise. I am actually contemplating surrendering my passport for an Indian one currently… for me, there is no bigger honour than playing for my country.”