However, the 21-year-old feels her real achievement in life was when she became a blackbelt who wears an abaya and also when she beat up a guy who was teasing her in a market once.
“My mother wanted me to make a name for myself,” Sundas told The Express Tribune. “I wasn’t good at studies and that’s why I dedicated my time to martial arts. Now, I’m doing well at the sport at the national and international level and I also get respect from those who thought that it was inappropriate for a girl to practice martial arts.”
Showing her skills in the market
Sundas then recalled how he earned respect in the market too – by flooring a guy in front of a crowd.
“There was this guy teasing me and I ended up hitting him. He couldn’t really fight. I just kicked him and he went down easily. After that, I thought people around me will judge me as a bad person but the women around me ended up appreciating what I did.”
A typical day for Sundas involves putting on her abaya and her shoes, strapping her backpack and walking to Dewa Academy (located in Karachi) twice a day where she polishes her skills. Sundas was picked by Tariq Ali when she was 13. She would practice after school, starting with karate and then switching to taekwondo after three years.
“Up until five years ago, I was struggling to find a balance between karate and taekwondo. I even experimented with judo. But then my coach introduced me to ju-jitsu and it felt right. It’s more about self-defence and technique instead of fighting.”
Medals galore
She has won 10 gold medals in four years at the Sindh Games before winning the National Ju-Jitsu Championship in 2008 along with a title in 48kg event at National Games to get selected for the 2009 Asian Championship, her first international event. Sundas went on to win three gold medals in three events in Tashkent and then grabbed two more golds and a silver the following year.
“I was happy but apprehensive in Tashkent because I didn’t know where these medals would take me. I‘m unsure about my participation in international events. I didn’t have the money to participate in the championship last year. I just won two silver medals in Iran last month and I was as anxious as the first time I won the national championship in 2008.”
Sundas was the only female representing Pakistan in the event. Unlike her four male teammates, her parents arranged for her finances.
“We just couldn’t waste all her effort because of lack of finances,” said Sundas’ mother. “Whenever there’s an opportunity for her to win a gold medal, we spend our savings or ask our political connections to sponsor the kids.”
When talent just isn’t enough: Sundas
Sundas practices six hours daily and trains 30 children every evening at the academy being the only female coach in the city. Her future, according to her, cannot be defined by her talent.
“I’m pursuing my BBA as well. Every tour depends on the availability of funds and my parents will not be able to arrange them every time. The federation only registers us for the event. We have to do everything else ourselves. Sometimes talent and hard work is just not enough.”
Published in The Express Tribune, December 14th, 2012.
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