Meet Savita Punia: From Sirsa to Rashtrapati Bhavan, hockey goalkeeping stalwart's long walk to Padma Shri

New Delhi: For women's hockey goalkeeping stalwart Savita Punia, the Padma Shri is more than a national honour -- it is a quiet acknowledgement of years marked by sacrifice, resilience, and unwavering belief, both her own and that of a family that stood by her when the odds were firmly stacked against her.

Savita, known as the 'Wall of Indian hockey' and the first woman goalkeeper to play over 300 international matches, says the honour has brought back memories of a journey that began far from the spotlight, in Sirsa, Haryana.

"My entire journey is flashing back in my mind, where I started and how many ups and downs there were," Savita told PTI Bhasha.

"My family has seen every struggle and every success. They wanted to see me receive this honour. Today, I feel their sacrifices have not gone in vain," said the 35-year-old Savita.

Her story began in 2003, when she was in Class VII. On a teacher's suggestion, her father, Mahendra Singh Punia, took her to the hockey selection trials in Sirsa. She was selected -- but the road ahead was anything but easy.

At home, her mother was battling severe arthritis and was confined to bed. Savita took on household chores while her father balanced work with caregiving. Unwilling to stay in a hostel and leave her mother in that condition, she even considered quitting the sport at one point.

It was her first coach, Sundar Singh Kharab, who altered the course of her career by suggesting she switch to goalkeeping. But there was a catch -- the academy did not have the budget for a kit.

"That day my father bought me a goalkeeping kit worth Rs 18,000...his two-months' salary," Savita recalled.

"I cried because I knew what that money meant. That day I decided I had to make it to the Indian team for my parents. I wanted to give my father a return gift."

In 2008, Savita achieved her first major breakthrough with her selection to the Indian team.

"I was the first girl from Sirsa to get selected in the Indian team. The newspaper carried the news with my grandfather's name in it, but he couldn't read. At 67, he learned to read from my niece so that he could read about me and himself," she said trying to hold back her tears.

That moment, Savita says, became her lifelong motivation.

"I promised myself I would never give up and would become an example for other girls."

Yet, success did not bring stability. For 10 years after joining the national team, Savita remained unemployed. The financial strain was constant, and the taunts were relentless.

"I joined the team in 2008 and remained unemployed till 2018. Sports equipment is expensive, injuries are always a risk, and people kept asking my family, 'what's the point of playing if she doesn't even have a job?'"

She still remembers her first international trip and how her family borrowed money to support her.

"At the airport, my father gave me Rs 5,000. My brother quietly gave me Rs 2,000 he had borrowed from a friend. That money was worth lakhs to me," said Savita.

She also recalls an incident when humiliation almost broke her spirit. In 2011, while returning from a camp in Bhopal, a bus conductor refused to allow her kitbag inside and tried to tease her when she protested.

"I was shattered and told my father I would quit hockey. But, instead, he somehow arranged money and bought an old car so I could travel safely with my kit,”she said.

Recognition finally came in 2018 with the Arjuna Award, but Savita's mother had only one question: "Will you get a job now?"

Despite becoming a three-time 'FIH Goalkeeper of the Year' awardee and crossing the 300-match milestone, the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna remained elusive.

"I applied three times after Tokyo. When others with similar achievements got it, it hurt. I wanted to give that happiness to my family," she said.

Now, the Padma Shri has filled that void.

The joy extends to her in-laws too. Married to a Canada-based music professional, Ankit Balhara, Savita credits her athlete mother-in-law for understanding her passion.

Just seven days after her wedding, she returned to the national camp. During the 2022 Nations Cup final against Spain, her father-in-law was undergoing a bypass surgery, but the family chose not to inform her.

"We won, qualified for the Pro League, and I was named best goalkeeper. Only later did I learn what they had gone through. I am so lucky to have such family support," she added.

As Savita prepares to walk into Rashtrapati Bhavan once again -- this time for the Padma Shri -- she carries with her not just medals and records, but the quiet strength of a family that never let her dreams fade.