Rajasthan, comprised majorly of girls from economically backward Dhingsari village in Bikaner district, won the tier II of 2024-25 junior girls’ national football championship, in a classic tale of triumph over societal perception. New Delhi: For former footballer Vikram Singh Rajvi, convincing parents of Rajasthan’s Dhingasri village to let their girls play football was arguably a bigger task than winning tier II of 2024-25 junior girls’ national football championship. Not only are the people of the Bikaner district’s village economically weak but thir mentality remains steeped in primitive conservatism to the extent that they still prefer girls to be married off before turning 12 than allow them to play football wearing “indecent” clothes.
Even if some defiant ones still did, they would end up slapped mercilessly, getting their certificates torn and dumped in the bin and quickly married off to prevent fascination to turn into passion. Like it happened with Ranjana (name changed to prevent identification due to sensitivity), who paid the punishment to play in a district-level tournament and emerge as its best player by getting married aged 13. Not even seeing their child weeping through the night softened them up.
Son of former India captain Magan Singh, Rajvi’s academy that is named after his father, encountered many such instances of forced marriages to bury fledgling ambitions in the village. Rajvi’s persistence paid off gradually, for not only was he able.