Padma Shri Deepa Malik has won several medals in international sports, the most notable being a silver medal at the 2016 Paralympic Games held at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Deepa Malik was a panelist at the recently concluded News Intervention Talk — “Inside the Mind of an Indian Woman”. She spoke to a journalism student, Niket, on the sidelines of this Talk about the condition of sports in India. Excerpts:
Q: Madam, why is it that the condition of athletes remains miserable in India?
Ans: According to me, in India the audience is responsible for the condition of Indian athletes.
Q: We had a grand tally of medals at the recently concluded South Asian Games, yet there was no coverage by media…
Ans: Well, I believe it’s all about the TRP (Television Rating Point). Today as an audience one enjoys the television shows that interest us, rather than the ones with factual knowledge. But it might change if budding journalists like you bring some changes to the flaws in today’s media.
Q: Are you taking part in this year Paralympic games at Tokyo?
Ans) No. This year there’s no Javelin throw event at the Tokyo Paralympic games.