‘The doctor warned me I could die, but I was determined to fight at the boxing

Nikhat Zareen, Lovlina Borgohain, Nitu Ghanghas and Saweety Boora are at the top today, having won gold medals in the Women’s World Boxing Championships. But their journey to the summit was long and arduous. The fabulous foursome have a common thread running through their careers – humble beginnings, societal resistance, sacrifices by parents and long years of struggle and stress. But one episode narrated by Saweety stood out for sheer drama and extreme valour. Here’s her story, in her words:
For the World Championships silver medal that I won in 2014 (Jeju Island, South Korea), I had to literally decide between life and the game. I got typhoid and had a near-fatal infection in my intestine which left me hospitalised for weeks. As I lay in hospital, the federation decreed that only those who won gold at the Nationals would be selected for the World Championships.
The doctor warned me, “Your intestines are damaged. You can’t even take a punch. Even if you do the warm-up, your intestine will come out and you could die!” But I was adamant. One day, I removed my drip and fled from the hospital. I reached the railway station only to see the train leaving the platform. I had no energy to run, yet somehow, I managed to get inside but soon fell unconscious.
I regained consciousness an hour later and got a call from my parents asking me to return. But I insisted, “If you come to take me back, I’ll jump from this train and commit suicide.”
At the Nationals, I would somehow fight and return with the coaches almost carrying me out of the ring. I couldn’t have solid food, for 5-6 days I just had water and tea. I won gold and went to Jeju. When I got the silver, for a while all the pain was forgotten.
‘It takes time to get good results. So many external factors affect our lives and our boxing’
Lovlina: Well, I try to stay away from the limelight to some extent. I don’t like much attention. That’s why I am not that good a speaker (laughs). My focus is not to become a star or that people recognise me or run after me. My dream is something different. I know one day my boxing career will come to an end, and I will leave it. I am saying it for the first time, I have not disclosed it earlier to anyone. My target is to do charity. I want to help the underprivileged after retiring from boxing. I don’t want to become a politician. I’ll do something away from boxing. I am earning well and want to use that money to help others.
Nikhat, you tell us about handling stardom…
Since childhood we have grown up watching stars and celebrities on TV at our home in Nizamabad. We used to see them in newspapers. And one day, you see yourself on TV and in newspapers… you become a celebrity. So, that’s a wonderful feeling. People usually run after actors to get their autographs or to click selfies with them. Some chase cricketers. When I saw all of that, I used to think, when will I get the stardom or become a celebrity? When I started getting attention after becoming…