Divya Kakran's father revealed that due to their financial situation, the family could only afford to pay rent for a small room
Wrestler Divya Kakran with mother Sanyogita and father Suraj during her last birthday
Life has not been a bed of roses for India wrestler Divya Kakran, who bagged the bronze medal in the 68kg category at the Asian Games in Jakarta on Tuesday. Kakran, a resident of Purbaliyan village in Uttar Pradesh, had to shift to New Delhi to pursue wrestling when she was just six. She also had to face stiff resistance at home from her grandparents. "We had to go against the will of my parents [Rajendar and Premwati] when Divya, my wife Sanyogita and I decided to shift to Delhi. It was a tough phase because my parents did not want Divya to wrestle against boys. Despite the opposition we received at home, we shifted," Divya's father Suraj told mid-day from Delhi yesterday.
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Due to their financial situation, the family could only afford to pay rent for a small room. "We used to live in a small room in Gokulpur in East Delhi. I used to pay R500 per month as rent. "As time progressed, we changed different rooms. Today, we are living in a small flat in the same area where I pay R5,000 per month," he added. Suraj revealed how Divya used to help share the expenses at home.
"When Divya began wrestling against boys in dangals, she used to win cash prizes frequently and began spending the money on the family. To make ends meet, my wife used to stitch wrestlers' langots [abdomen supporters] and I used to sell them at different akhadas and dangals [wrestling competitions]. We used to earn around R5,000 to 8,000 per month. We are doing the same business today because it helped us a lot during our days of struggle," said Suraj. Suraj also revealed how his daughter battled against odds and won a medal on Tuesday despite a ligament injury. "She has been suffering from a ligament injury on her right leg for the last 15 days. I am really proud how she fought while also taking care of her injury," Suraj concluded.
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