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The day I became a runner: a women's history of India through the lens of sport

By: Publication details: HarperCollins 2023 GurugramDescription: 349 p. Includes notesISBN:
  • 9789356994621
Subject(s): DDC classification:
  • 809 C4T4
Summary: The Day I Became a Runner tells the story of India from the 1930s to the present moment through the lives of eight athletes and one running school. The profiles include prominent Olympians such as PT Usha and Lalita Babar, as well as some unremembered figures such as Mary D’Souza who played hockey for India and ran track; and Ila Mitra, the woman who could have been the first Indian woman at the Olympics had the 1940 Games not been cancelled for World War II. The Day I Became a Runner is a rigorously researched anatomy of contemporary Indian patriarchy as well as an account of the iron determination ambitious women athletes have to muster in the face of poverty, meagre training facilities and unforgiving social conventions. Running requires minimal equipment and competitive sports’ association with patriotism—winning glory for India in international fora—allows women the licence to practise and participate publicly and to put themselves out there in the world. The appeal of running is that it is a basic, full-body, minimal-equipment sport. And it is public: running puts bodies on view. The returns from athletics are not big. Women athletes who run are thus visible questions: Why are they running? Why are they here? https://harpercollins.co.in/blog/announcements/press-release/sohini-chattopadhyays-the-day-i-became-a-runner/
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Item type Current library Item location Collection Shelving location Call number Status Date due Barcode
Books Vikram Sarabhai Library Rack 41-B / Slot 2369 (3rd Floor, East Wing) Non-fiction General Stacks 809 C4T4 (Browse shelf(Opens below)) Available 207017

The Day I Became a Runner tells the story of India from the 1930s to the present moment through the lives of eight athletes and one running school. The profiles include prominent Olympians such as PT Usha and Lalita Babar, as well as some unremembered figures such as Mary D’Souza who played hockey for India and ran track; and Ila Mitra, the woman who could have been the first Indian woman at the Olympics had the 1940 Games not been cancelled for World War II.

The Day I Became a Runner is a rigorously researched anatomy of contemporary Indian patriarchy as well as an account of the iron determination ambitious women athletes have to muster in the face of poverty, meagre training facilities and unforgiving social conventions. Running requires minimal equipment and competitive sports’ association with patriotism—winning glory for India in international fora—allows women the licence to practise and participate publicly and to put themselves out there in the world.

The appeal of running is that it is a basic, full-body, minimal-equipment sport. And it is public: running puts bodies on view. The returns from athletics are not big. Women athletes who run are thus visible questions: Why are they running? Why are they here?


https://harpercollins.co.in/blog/announcements/press-release/sohini-chattopadhyays-the-day-i-became-a-runner/

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