Farmer’s daughter Chikitha bags two golds, powers India’s charge
HYDERABAD: India had its most fruitful day at the 2026 Asian Games so far on Wednesday, winning seven medals, including four golds and three bronzes, to move into eighth place in the overall standings with 60 medals, as reported by TOI.
Telangana’s Chikitha Taniparthi and Maharashtra’s Sahil Jadhav were at the centre of India’s golden run in compound archery, winning two team golds each. Chikitha won the women’s team event with Jyothi Surekha Vennam and Prithika Pradeep before pairing with Jadhav to win the mixed team title.
The mixed team victory also secured an Olympic quota place for the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Neeru Dhanda then added another gold alongside Kynan Chenai in the trap shooting mixed team event, her second gold of the Games.
Chikitha’s two-gold haul was a reward for the sacrifices made by her family. Her father Srinivasa Rao, a small farmer from Sultanpur in Eligaid mandal of Peddapalli district, sold his harvester, worth ₹23 lakh, for ₹18 lakh to support her archery training.
As the 21-year-old made waves in Nagoya, Rao was tending to his paddy crop on the family’s three-acre farm. He had no smartphone or television to follow his daughter’s performance and learnt about her gold from his son Yashwanth.
“We were confident of a medal, but were not expecting gold,” Srinivasa told Media from Sultanpur, about 250km northeast of Hyderabad.
“Two gold medals for the country is a big achievement. I hope she wins another gold tomorrow.”
Debt and limited facilities tested the family’s resolve
Rao said supporting two children’s sporting ambitions was financially difficult. Chikitha has a black belt in karate, but the lack of facilities in Sultanpur forced her to give up the sport.
She also tried badminton before taking up archery. Rao then moved his two children around in search of training academies before they came in contact with Indian archer Abhishek Verma.
“Travelling with two kids is very expensive. I could not afford to travel and stay in hotels for 15 days at a stretch and also pay for the practice sessions. So, I incurred a lot of debt,” Rao said.
His only source of income is the family’s small farm. With two paddy crops a year, the profit from each crop ranges between ₹70,000 and ₹1 lakh.
Rao still has an outstanding bank loan of ₹2 lakh, while other loans amount to ₹5-7 lakh.
Chikitha justified her father’s faith by winning the 2025 World Youth Championship. She has since continued to add international medals to her tally.
“She’s won seven international medals for the country, but we are yet to get incentives for her achievements. Chikitha and I have gone to many offices to submit our petitions. Govt support is poor,” he said.
Government incentives have so far amounted to ₹6 lakh. Reliance Foundation and the Sports Authority of India now support Chikitha’s training.
There was also a setback shortly before the Games when Chikitha was laid low by fever.
“She couldn’t practise. We were very worried. But once she recovered she focused on the game again,” Rao said.
On Thursday, Chikitha will return to competition for the individual compound archery event. Rao, meanwhile, will put aside his farming work and follow his daughter’s bid for another medal.
