Nana Patekar with Gagan Narang
Bhagwat recalled her scores jumping from the 365-370 range to 380-plus of 400, a leap considered extraordinary at the time. In those days, touching 385 or 390 was a big thing and it was almost unbelievable,” she said. For shooters accustomed to sharing equipment, owning a personal rifle transformed performance levels. “It was a great change for us.
Pune: Long before Indian shooting became an Olympic success story, it found an unlikely benefactor in actor Nana Patekar , who passed away on Thursday.
Shirur, who also started her career from Mumbai at the same time, said she got to know the importance of having her own equipment only when she got one. I would say that it changed my career’s trajectory for good,” Shirur, who later coached Olympians like Aishwary Pratap Singh Tomar and Paralympic champion Avani Lekhara, said. Deshpande, who has coached Paris Games bronze medallist Swapnil Kusale, said Patekar not just supported them with the equipment, but also taught them life lessons. He was there for us when nobody gave us a chance,” she said. That meant a lot to us,” she said.
“We were seven shooters who used to share the same jacket and trousers. They used to smell and I had to wait the whole day to get my turn to wear them and train. It was such a special feeling when we got our personal kits. “The first thing he taught us was humility. Despite being a huge star, he treated us as equals. More importantly, he made us believe we could achieve big things in life. Shirur echoed the sentiment. “In the hindsight, when I see the support, I see a humble man putting his faith in women athletes, when nobody expected them to win anything. He used to talk to us and get updates of our shooting.