From Dal Lake to Kartavya Path: Kayaker Mohsin Ali and his coach Bilquis Mir's tale of resilience

New Delhi: Mohsin Ali was about seven when he decided that a kayak paddle and not a shikara oar would shape his future on the pristine waters of Dal Lake.

A decade later and with solid backing from his trailblazing coach Bilquis Mir, who fought many uphill battles to sustain the sport in Srinagar, the now 18-year-old is headed in the right direction as he gears up to be on Kartavya Path this Republic Day.

The lanky teenager from Srinagar's Kand Mohalla, a hamlet within Dal Lake that houses "people of water", will be on Jammu and Kashmir's tableau during the January 26 parade, adding a sporting touch to the Union Territory's identity that largely revolves around tourism.

Although Mohsin has been an active competitor since 2018, his biggest moment came last year when he won the men's 1000m kayaking race gold medal at the Government's flagship Khelo India Water Games, drawing the attention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

"I am the first sportsperson in my family and all I want to do is to make the country proud with an Olympic medal at some point. I have won 17 medals so far in my career," Mohsin told PTI over a telephonic interview in eager anticipation of his big moment on Monday "that will rank right up there" with the high he felt during a five-minute chat with Modi on 'Mann ki Baat' last year.

"That (conversation with the PM) made me famous here (in Srinagar). When I take out the Shikara, people recognise me," said the youngster, who has finished his schooling and now spends a lot of time training at an academy in Koteshwar, Uttarakhand for the upcoming trials for the World Championship in April.

The Bilquis Mir effect- His father, despite being caught up with odd jobs to sustain the family, had a stellar role in supporting Mohsin's sporting ambitions.

But Mohsin also has immense gratitude for his coach Bilquis Mir, a former kayaker, who transitioned into not just a national coach (both junior and senior) but also a technical official.

She became the first Indian to be a canoeing/kayaking judge at the Paris Olympics in 2024 and was the national coach of the Indian women's team in the 2012 London Olympics.

"She has been there with me from the very beginning and I wouldn't have made it this far without her support," he said.

The 38-year-old Mir, also hailing from Srinagar, said through Mohsin, she is hoping to live the Olympic dream that eluded her as an active competitor.

"I have been training Mohsin since he was six or seven years old. This boy has struggled a lot and has done it with a smile on his face. I have done my bit in pushing him and I think of him as my own child," Mir said of her bond with Mohsin.

"I have tried to be there for him when injuries have bogged him down, or when he was battling the odds of outdated equipment. The weather in Kashmir can be extreme as well and that's a massive challenge for a kayaker.

"What people see is the medal, they have no idea what goes into making that medal. Only the athlete and his coach know about the struggle of getting there and I am so happy for Mohsin. His success feels personal," she added proudly.

When asked to detail the challenges, Mir started with the very basics, the diet.

"You know Kashmiri breakfast largely is Kandru Roti (traditional bread) and Nun Chai (salty tea). That can never be enough for an aspiring athlete. We have had to work very hard to change these basics," she said.

Mir has had to fight battles of her own as well, starting with the "daring act of putting on an India track suit and going for training back in 1998 at the peak of terrorism" when she was an aspiring kayaker.

More recently, she won a legal battle against the state which was lambasted by the High Court for "launching a witch hunt" against her in a case of allegedly wrongful appointment as a physical education teacher.

"I am still struggling but water sports keeps me afloat," she quipped.

"When I started out as a kayaker, I was told that 'ye ladki Kashmir ka naam kharab karegi' (this girl will ruin Kashmir's reputation). Bohot kuch sunna pada mujhe bhi, mere maa-baap ko bhi but Allah was with me.

"And now when this kid proudly declares that I am his coach, imagine what it means. In a male dominated society, he has no qualms in acknowledging me and that I believe is one of my biggest wins in life," she said.

Mir, who would be accompanying Mohsin to Delhi, said she was left inundated with admission queries at her "small academy" in Srinagar after Modi's chat with Mohsin last year.

"More than 100 enquiries were made after PM's chat with Mohsin on his radio address, I don't even have the infrastructure to accommodate these many but I was so happy to see Mohsin's triumph inspire other youngsters," she said.

"Canoeing/Kayaking has more than 15 Olympic medals on offer. Just imagine where we would be overall in Olympic rankings if we were to do well in this one sport," she pointed out.