In a remote tribal village in West Bengal, India, a quiet revolution began in 2013 — with a rugby ball. Chanda Oraon was just 14 when she first encountered the sport. She had never seen a rugby match, let alone played one. But that moment changed everything.
"When rugby was introduced to us, around 1,000 children gathered out of curiosity. We wondered what sport that was. We had no idea. We had never seen anything like this on TV," Chanda, a rugby player, told DW. "It was an interesting moment for us."
The unlikely catalyst was Paul Walsh, an Irish rugby enthusiast and coach who brought the game to Saraswatipur — a village nestled among tea plantations and home to a tight-knit tribal community. What began as curiosity soon became a passion, especially among the girls.
But while they quickly adopted the game, girls like Chanda initially faced backlash from the other villagers.
Chanda went on to represent her state and her country in tournaments, despite the opposition. But fame didn't bring financial security. She had to take up a sales executive job to support herself. "I took that job because I had no option. I have represented Bengal in so many tournaments. I never received any help from the government or its sports ministry — neither money nor a job," she said.
In West Bengal, where child marriage is more common than anywhere else in India, rugby once gave girls a reason to resist. But as support dwindles, so does participation — and the progress it brought.
So, will the spirit of Saraswatipur's rugby girls survive? Only time will tell if Chanda's story inspires a new generation of women rugby players.