The ongoing 67th National Shooting Championship will stand out for the Karmakar family, especially for Olympian Joydeep, given the string of emotions attached to this edition of the prestigious event on the National Rifle Association of India’s calendar.
It isn’t often that an entire family is seen in action at one event, but the Karmakars are known to take the less-travelled route. While son Adriyan is one of the promising names to keep a watch on, and figures prominently among the medal hopefuls in Men’s 50m Rifle Three Positions; parents, Joydeep and Radhika, have reasons to celebrate too.
Joydeep, who had a celebrated international career as a 50m Rifle Prone shooter before turning to coaching, will mark a return to the competitive ranks after a gap, and Radhika, a renowned singer and radio jockey, will turn out in the pistol events.
“Following my appointment as chief rifle coach of the Indian team in 2022, I decided to retire, and I would like to keep my word. Hence, that is the reason I will be competing in the Masters’ category,” said Joydeep in an exclusive chat with indianshooting.com.
The urge to compete had been brewing for a while, but when the deadline arrived, Joydeep waited for the last day to send his entry.
“As an international shooter and coach, we have the knowledge and experience, but there are many finer points in shooting that one tends to forget if not participating actively in competitions,” said Joydeep, whose last major international competition was a World Cup at the Czech Republic in 2015.
Explaining his stand, he said, “For a long time, my students had been urging me to return to competition, and I gave in, in order to get better as a coach.”
Joydeep has taken the plunge, but is not willing to commit on his competitiveness in view of the busy schedule.
In Bhopal, where the rifle events are being staged, Joydeep has divided his time between coaching and getting tournament ready, the former taking a precedence for obvious reasons.
With a chuckle, Joydeep said that getting himself ready for the Nationals was a throwback to the days when he started out. “When I began my career, I had nothing, no rifle or proper gear. I had to borrow a rifle and my friend Nilesh (Rane, the founder of Capapie) was kind enough to gift me a jacket.”
It’s been a long while since Joydeep felt the rush of competition in the veins, but is happy to report that training over just three days went off better than expected.
While Adriyan and Joydeep will be shooting at the Madhya Pradesh State Shooting Academy in Bhopal, Radhika has her commitments in 10m Air Pistol at the Karni Singh Shooting Range in New Delhi.
Though sport takes a backseat when the family is together at their home in Kolkata, it was the competitive spirit of Joydeep that rubbed off on Radhika, and had her take a leap of faith.
Starting off with rifle, Radhika won a medal in a state competition before going into a break. When she resumed a year later, qualifying for the Nationals showed she had lost none of the touch.
Her focus is now on pistol, and Joydeep is hopeful that Radhika will find her bearing and make a mark in the Masters’ category.
Adriyan, 19, created a record when he took part in the Nationals at age 10, and there has been no looking back since. Joydeep has been careful on how Adriyan, now a part of the Sports Authority of India’s National Centre of Excellence in New Delhi, has been reared considering that he wears two hats as father and coach.
“The conversation at home is very balanced, and over time I have realized that Adi is serious about his career, and owns his actions, hence there is no need to push or overburden him,” said Joydeep.
Joydeep isn’t thinking too much on his comeback as well. “I will take a call if I would want to keep turning up. Barring the Nationals, the opportunities are limited, so one is not sure,” he explained.
The family will converge in Kolkata around Christmas for a short vacation, and while it will be spending quality time over everything else, some notes on the Nationals will be exchanged, but within limits as the ethos of maintaining a work-life balance is paramount in the household.