CHENNAI: Arundhati Choudhary was in a lighthearted mood late in the evening on Monday, exploring a beach in Chennai.
It was a welcome break for the highly-touted boxer from Kota (Rajasthan), a former world youth champ, as just a few hours ago, she had demonstrated her aptitude inside the ring to capture a gold medal in the BFI Cup 2025, an elite national event that is being conducted at VIT in the city.
For Arundhati, this latest hit is a step in the right direction as the last one year or so has been a strenuous period for the youngster. It all began with her dream-shattering defeat at the Olympic qualifiers in the summer of 2024 in Thailand. Her mother's health was also on the decline then. "I had won my first bout (Olympic Qualifiers), before my second bout, my brother called me and said 'my mother is admitted in ICU' . My body was shivering, I was not able to think of anything. And I lost the next bout by split decision against a boxer who I had beaten in the past. I felt like it's end of the world. I didn't know where I could start afresh."
To add to her misery, she was forced to undergo a surgery early this year for a wrist injury in her left hand (her strong hand).
"Following that, I had to undergo a surgery for my left wrist. There was no alternative. After the surgery in early January, I was not doing well. I was becoming negative by the day. Be it happy or sad, I had to endure this and I was at home for three months."
On the positive side, she was getting to spend quality time with her mother and the rest of the family after her surgery. However, her thoughts would also shift towards regrets every now and then. "I was feeling sad inside as I had dreamt of Paris for nine years and that dream ended within nine minutes. And my mother's health was still not okay. And my hand was also not fine. My Olympic dream, the reason I took up the sport...how will I fulfil it. But my parents would keep encouraging me."
The former national champion also started embracing her predicament then and started taking a positive approach before returning to training. "I went back to ASI, Pune and started training under coach Chhote Lal Yadav. He helped me a great deal. The OGQ was also quite supportive. I'm grateful that my parents, coach and the OGQ were with me. So today (Monday), I could return with this gold and make a big step on my comeback."
Making a comeback after an injury is always a tricky proposition. The 23-year-old is pleased with the current flow in her game. "My boxing is the same. My plus points are my left hook and my strength. I felt that hasn't changed during this meet. My mental status was much better this time around. In my last competition, I was stressed about many things...the routine etc. This time I didn't take any stress. In the ASI, I had trained with the boys so it was easy against the girls here."
Representing Services, Arundhati proved to be too strong for Sneha in the women's 70kg final. Having achieved her tournament goals, she now has ambitions to emulate this performance during the World Cup finals, which is scheduled to be held in New Delhi next month.
"From the start itself, I was quite confident that I'll win gold in this competition. However, I wanted to test out a few things like employing more uppercuts, more footwork. And I could do the same. Now, I want to be part of the upcoming World Cup in India."
Given her high ceiling and the lessons she has learnt in the last one year or so, Arundhati will be one pugilist to keep a close eye on.
Gold winners
Apart from Arundhati, Nivedita Karki of Uttarakhand (48kg), RSPB's Bhavna Sharma (51kg), Khushi Yadav of Maharashtra (54kg), Vinakshi Dhota of Himachal Pradesh (57kg), Parveen Hooda (SAI; 60kg), Assam's Ankushita Boro (65kg), Monika (SAI; 75kg), Babita Bisht of All India Police (80kg) and Ritika of SAI (+80kg) were the other gold winners in the women's category. All the gold and silver winners will be included in the elite national camp.
In the men's category, Asian Games gold medallist Amit Panghal (55kg), representing Services, suffered a defeat in the semifinals. Former World Championships bronze medallist Mohammad Hussamuddin (60kg), meanwhile, entered the finals.
Divya joins elite club
Madhya Pradesh boxers were among medal winners during the elite competition. Divya Pawar (54kg) claimed silver while Anjali Singh (57kg), Mahi Lama (60kg), Saurav Yadav (85kg) and Paras (90kg) captured bronze medals. Divya, meanwhile, will now be part of the elite national camp and will have a chance to be in contention for Asian Games.