Just like any superhero, Vahbiz Bharucha lives a dual life. A physiotherapist by profession, her superpower lies in the sport of rugby that has led her to become the Indian Women’s Rugby captain. While most superheroes in movies and comic books are men, Vahbiz has broken down barriers and preconceived notions through sheer grit, hard work and determination and is an inspiration for future generations of girls looking to pursue sports. 

In an exclusive interview with SPOGO, Vahbiz elaborated on her journey so far, maintaining fitness during the lockdown, development of rugby at the grassroots, the importance of mental health and her future goals. 

How did your interest in rugby begin? When did you feel it’s a career you can pursue professionally?

I was in my 10th grade in the year 2009 when the coach from the KFANDRA (Khare's Football AND Rugby Academy) approached my school to introduce rugby as a sport into the curriculum. After his meeting with the principal, he was introduced to my then batchmate & now teammate Neha Pardeshi and me as we both were the star sportswomen of our school. He informed us about this club in Pune and also invited us to a friendly game being played between the KFANDRA Women, Jammu Kashmir and The Hong Kong Hotties which was happening in Pune over the weekend. Neha and I hopped onto our vehicle and went over to this tournament. We were both taken aback by the energy, enthusiasm and passion of the women there. As soon as our board exams were over, on the 21st of March, 2009 was when I joined the game of rugby and never looked back. What appealed to me the most about the game was the respect and teamwork the game taught and demanded. To answer the 2nd question, I never really thought of rugby as a profession or even thought about it as a driving factor. All I was aware of was that this game really brings out the best in me and I enjoy every little bit of it.

For a country not known for rugby especially for women, how challenging has it been to be a female rugby player? How have you overcome those challenges?

This has never been a challenge. Even the sport that's given the most importance in our country, it's women have had to prove themselves massively. In a patriarchal system it's something we take into our stride and just keep our focus on the performance because nothing speaks louder than that. However, having said that, our National Union – the Indian Rugby Football Union has been very fair towards its women in terms of opportunities, approachability and problem solving. They have made us feel respected and safe.

How have you been maintaining your fitness and preparations during the COVID-19 pandemic and the ongoing lockdown?

I have been training 6 days a week for close to 2 hours through the lockdown until now. Our national team coaches had sent us some weekly running, strength and conditioning programs which I followed to the T. These workouts consisted mostly of body weight exercises and focused on improving our strength, endurance, power and speed (basically make us war ready ;p). In my other life, I am a professional physiotherapist. I do home visits and use bicycling as my mode of transport. There's where I cover my endurance by clocking an average of 25- 30km per day.

How much of a boost is it that the state of Odisha has partnered with the IRFU to develop the sport? How much of an impact will it make at the grassroot level?

This is a massive step and will prove to be very beneficial in growing the interest of the youth. Out of 12 players in our national team today, about 8 have another job that brings home the bread and butter and the rest are students who still depend a lot on their parents for their financial needs. If an athlete can make it to a national camp without worrying about the time and money lost in the bargain, that's all one ever wishes for. That while I fuel my passion, the flame in the kitchen of my home cannot be put off. With this partnership, this load has been taken off the athlete's shoulders completely. This also creates a projection for younger players who are still in the grassroots as something to work hard towards, because now with the money involved,  this is possible. It will increase the competition levels and efforts of all the existing national team players, thus raising the bar of performance to a completely different level.

Rugby has a reputation for being a contact, even a violent sport. However, how important of a role does mental health play for a rugby player to perform at the highest level?

I am so happy this is being discussed. Mental health plays a huge role in any player's performance. If you look at it in relation to the physical body, an athlete cannot run at top speed if her ankle has a sprain. She will run, which will cause more damage to that sprain in the long run. This same thing happens in the mind and that's how a healthy mind leads to a complete change in performance. A player with good mental health can make their team win a losing game whereas a player who is dealing with a lot of internal pressure and hurt can lead their team to losing a winning game, which in turn affects their mental health even further.

What needs to be done to encourage more girls to pursue rugby on a recreational or professional level?

Getting more girls to play will encourage more girls to play. If brothers and male members of these families can be educated and shown the benefits of the game not only on the field but also off the field, it will help gather a lot of girls to play the game – recreationally and professionally.

What can the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports do to support and promote rugby? How important is media representation to get more support from the government?

I am not in a position to answer the former question as I am not equipped with enough knowledge about this but I believe they already are in talks with the Union for some plans in the pipeline. Media representation is the most important thing in today's day and age as it's the fastest way to reach millions and trillions of pairs of eyes. It is because of this very medium that so many thousands of Indians who never knew rugby existed now know that India has national teams that perform on a regular basis.

What are your goals and aspirations for the future? Do you believe that the Indian Women’s Rugby team can make it to the Olympics one day?

Yes, I do believe that India will make it to the Olympics one day and make an impact too! That's a long term vision of at least about 7 to 10 years from here. My short term goals are that we move from 9th rank in Asia (Women's Sevens ranking) to the top 5 in Asia within the next 3 years (from whenever competitions resume) and in the fifteens game to move up from 14th in Asia into top 10 within the next 5 years.