‘Now, more girls will be

This year’s Olympics saw India’s best performance, with the highest number of wins ever for the country. Along with the men, women players such as Mirabai Chanu, Lovlina Borgohain, Rani Rampal and PV Sindhu, gained major limelight due to their grit and made us proud.

Rakul Preet Singh, a sports lover who has played golf at the national level and co-owns the team representing Hyderabad in the Tennis Premier League, believes that this will encourage more girls to chase their dreams. “It is a proud moment, and will motivate girls to pursue their passion as they have a direction now,” the actor says.

She believes that this will pave the road towards a nation that abounds in successful female sportspersons, as she shares, “It’s great that women are shining and have achieved feats at international level. It means a lot as it shows the internal power of women.”

The Sardar Ka Grandson actor stresses on the need to give equal importance to sports as is given to academics. She elaborates, “We should talk about these sports personalities and celebrate their life stories. When people are aware about the hardships they faced and made it to the Olympics, it will encourage them to pursue sports.”

While she believes that the sports facilities in the country are “really good”, Singh is quick to point out that a lot more has to be done for the future generations. “If a public figure comes forward to promote a sport, people will take it seriously. Apart from endorsing sports, there needs to be a conversation about the opportunities and the platforms that allow aspiring players to pursue a proper career. There should also be sports counselling,” she concludes.

Rakul Preet Singh