AVANI LEKHARA

The Midas Touch The double Paralympic gold medallist on how air rifle shooting helped her come out of her shell, how she balances studies and training, and why she wants to become a judge.

- Ria Singh

On August 30, Avani Lekhara-a 22-year-old from Jaipur, Rajasthan-made headlines (once again) at the 2024 Paralympics, held in Paris. Competing in the women's 10m air rifle standing SH1 event (a classification for para-shooters who can hold their gun and shoot from a standing or sitting position-in-a wheelchair or chair) she defended her champion title, becoming the first Indian woman to win two gold medals in the history of Paralympic Games. In a twist that's both surprising and fitting, Avani broke her own record-previously set at the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games with 249.6 points. She also set a new record with an impressive score of 249.7 points. That glorious moment Avani beaming with her gold medal alongside Korean para-athlete Lee Yunri with a silver, and her compatriot Mona Agarwal with a bronze-captured in Châteauroux, France, went viral across social media and publications in no time.

While preparing for my interview with this Paralympic sensation, I couldn't help but wonder how she stacks up against other 22-year-olds. Is she caught up scrolling through Instagram reels like the rest of us? Or, perhaps, she's one to overthink and worry about things that probably won't matter five years from now?

Curious about her world, I catch up with Avani on a midweek Zoom call. Her signature smile radiates through the screen, as she shares that she was "kind of an introvert," adding, "I couldn't make many friends because I was changing schools every year." This constant uprooting was because of her father, Praveen Lekhara, a member of the Rajasthan Administrative Services-the family remained on the move before Avani's life took an unexpected turn.