Over 200 in a decade: At football coaching class, these girls are breaking stereotypes

Heena Shaikh is amongst the many girls who are smashing the societal stereotypes to play football, thrice a week, at the playground in Shivaji Nagar — which is home to one of the major residential hubs for the Low Income Groups (LIGs). With many girls of the area often deterred from playing the sport ‘meant for boys’ or cajoled into taking up small jobs like stitching to support their economically disadvantaged families, the coaching class – helmed by The Next Page Foundation – was launched to platform for the girls to turn a page in their lives. Their journey began in 2013 with Shweta Shetty (22) — then all of 10 years — who was amongst the first to enroll for the class. Twelve years on, Shweta has not only found her escape in football despite much opposition from her family but also dons the hat of a professional coach at the institute which honed her skills. Survived by her father who is a rickshaw driver and her mother – a homemaker – Shweta now assists her family financially in what has given her a new sense of agency.

“I would fight with my parents and do extra chores at work to convince them. Outside the house, people would judge me for my attire (shorts) and jibe at me saying this is a sport for boys but I feel a certain sense of freedom on the ground. When I play football, I feel free as the game doesn’t discriminate between genders,” says Shweta, who, having turned her passion into her professional career, now coaches other girls as well as boys in the community. For Shweta, the biggest hurdles stem from outside the field ranging from fighting for space on the ground to convincing parents to let girls continue.

Anoop Parik of The Next Page Community said that most girls drop out after their adolescence, owing to parental pressure. Meanwhile, Shabin Shaikh (14), who trains as a goalkeeper said, “When I started playing football years ago, many friends would accompany me. But now, I am the sole one. Many of the friends had to quit as their parents would cite safety concerns or tell them that they ought to do household work instead.” Dispelling them as excuses, Shweta says that football is not just about the sport but it also teaches invaluable life lessons of teamwork, leadership, respect etc.

After starting from a humble group of eight girls in 2013, the Next Page community has now coached nearly 200 girls of Govandi, Shivaji Nagar over the past decade. Despite the jeers of their naysayers, the number of girls registering for football coaching has seen an uptick. Heena Shaikh, who is the only member of her family of four brothers and a sister that plays football smiles, “I find my inspiration in Neymar. He never paid heed to his hecklers and managed to bounce back even after his serious injury. Just like him, I want to continue to play for myself.”