One only needs to skim through Indian mythology to understand the reverential place that the ancient sport of archery holds in India. Whether it is Arjuna’s shooting the fish-eye in the Mahbharata or Rama’s breaking the unbreakable bow in the Ramayana, the bow and arrow are more than just tests of strength for a prospective warrior groom of yore. Tribal communities, that have been traditionally skilled at archery hail from many Indian states including the Indian North East and interior regions of Odisha, Jharkhand and Rajasthan. One of the most notable names in the world of modern Indian archery is Limba Ram, who hails from a tribal community of Rajasthan and is currently one of the coaches for the Indian archery team at the Olympics 2012. Some of the other Indian archers who have represented India in the sport include Tarundeep Rai, Satyadev Prasad, Jayanta Talukdar, Dola Banerjee, Rahul Banerjee, L. Bombayla Devi, Chekrovolu Swuro and Deepika Kumari, who, at the time of going to print, is ranked world No. 1.
An edited version of the article was published in Culturama’s September 2012 Issue.
