From Drawing Faces To Drawing Bowstrings: Payal Nag's Inspiring Para-archery Journey

From drawing faces to drawing bowstrings: Payal Nag's inspiring para-archery journey (Image Source: IANS)

Maata Vaishno Devi Shrine Archery: When Sheetal Devi won India's first medal in archery at the Paris Paralympics without hands, the world was amazed. Everyone wondered how this was possible, and she became a star overnight.

Enter Payal Nag – an archer without hands and feet who has already defeated Sheetal once to win the title at the recently held 6th National Para Archery Championship in Jaipur. She has learned the tricks of the trade from the same academy that made Sheetal a star – the Maata Vaishno Devi Shrine Archery Academy.

But despite the competition on the archery field, Payal considers Sheetal her elder sister. And like her elder sister, she also dreams of winning a Paralympic medal for the country.

In conversation with SAI Media during the ongoing Khelo India Para Games, Payal said, “My dream is to win a gold medal for the country. If I can come from an orphanage in Balangir, Odisha and defeat Sheetal didi, then my goal can be nothing less than winning gold for the country.”

The story of Payal, the world's only archer without hands and feet, closely resembles that of Italy's great para-fencer Beatrice Maria Vio. Beatrice lost her hands and feet due to meningitis, but this adversity did not bog her down. Instead, she set an example for the likes of Payal by winning two gold medals in the Foil-B event at the Rio and Tokyo Paralympics.

Now, Payal appears to be following the same path, and she is sure to prove that the future belongs to her.

Kuldeep Vedwan, Payal coach at the Academy in Jammu, discovered her in Balangir, Odisha, and introduced her to the sport. He believes that Payal has extraordinary talent, with this same confidence instilled in the youngster.

Besides her coach, Sheetal also admires Payal's talent. During the Khelo India Para Games 2025, Sheetal told SAI Media, “When Payal shot an arrow for the first time, I wondered whether it would be possible, but she did it excellently. I was happy. Payal is talented and like my younger sister. She is hard-working. She can bring glory to the country.”

In 2015, Payal's hands and feet were rendered useless after coming in contact with an 11,000-volt power line passing over a roof. The youngster was not too keen on recollecting this incident, but her coach Kuldeep said, “It became difficult for her family to take care of her. Then, with the help of the District Collector, Payal was placed in 2019 in Parvatigiri Balniketan – an orphanage in Balangir. Payal stayed there for three years, and in 2022, I brought her to Jammu.”

Her journey from Balangir to Jammu is nothing short of inspiring. Coming from a poor family in Odisha, Payal has parents and siblings at home. Her father is a farmer, while her elder sister Varsha Nag stays with her at the academy hostel and takes care of everything – from bathing to feeding her.

Payal said that she used to draw pictures with her mouth, and one day someone posted one of these pictures on Twitter, which went viral. Coach Kuldeep saw this and then contacted Payal for the first time. “I used to draw with my mouth before. I could draw anyone's face by looking at them. One of my pictures went viral on social media. My guru (coach Kuldeep) also saw this, and then came to me at my orphanage and brought me to Jammu.”

To prove how talented Payal is, Kuldeep mentioned that the National Para-Archery Championship in 2025 was her first competition. She secured the top spot in the presence of many of India's para-archery legends, including Payal's state-mate and Paralympic medallist Sheetal Devi as well as Paralympian Jyoti Baliyan. Additionally, Payal also defeated Sheetal in the Olympic round to become the national champion.

The 17-year-old added, “When I first went to the academy, I saw that everyone had hands and feet. Children held the bow with their hands. I wondered how I would manage. Then my guru reassured me that he would help me with this and patted my back saying not to worry, he was there, and I could do it. After that, sir made a device for me and then started giving me practice.”

Speaking about the new device, Kuldeep revealed that he custom-made a bow for Payal, helping her become the national champion. However, there was opposition to this. “A rule came into being against shooting arrows with both feet, but there will be a change to this in the coming years because Payal is the only athlete in the world who has no feet or hands.

"Seeing this opposition, I made another device, which Payal is using with just one foot. Now, she lifts the bow with her right foot and pulls it with her right shoulder. I also crafted a device to pull the bowstring for her,” he explained.

Currently, Payal is preparing for the World Ranking Tournament in Thailand. She is using the Khelo India Para Games as a platform to do so, but her goal is the 2026 Tokyo Para Asian Games and the 2028 Paralympics.

For a person who knew nothing about archery two years ago, Payal is now full of confidence. “They say that when you have confidence in yourself, everything is possible. I had faith in myself and my coach. It's because of them that I am sitting here talking to you today and have also won a national medal. Before coming to Jammu, I didn't know anything about archery. Then coach sir showed me videos of Sheetal didi, and that's when I learned about this sport.”

Currently, Payal is preparing for the World Ranking Tournament in Thailand. She is using the Khelo India Para Games as a platform to do so, but her goal is the 2026 Tokyo Para Asian Games and the 2028 Paralympics.

Article Source: IANS