India\’s Real Superwoman- Dr. Seema Rao

In India, many girls are eve-teased, and it takes a lot of courage to fight back during such situations. This is the story of Dr. Seema Rao, who fought her eve-teasers at 18, became India\’s first woman trainer in the Special Forces, and her battle with amnesia.

“Intense desire creates its talents and opportunities.”  – Dr. Seema Rao.

 

Seema Rao is India’s first women commando trainer, and she is an expert in close-quarter battles. 

 

Start Of Her Journey

“The patriotism that runs in my vein, and this is part of a reason. My dad was a part of the freedom struggle in India. He took part in Goa\’s freedom struggle\”.

\”My journey started 25 years back. As a child, I always wanted to do something for my country. I was at the right place at the right time. I had certain skills, and I had done certain courses like military martial arts. I was good at shooting. Once I met a senior police official, and he noticed the skills I had. He said to me I should give a demonstration, and then I went in to train them”

.

“It has been a satisfying and honorable work for me”.

 

Commando

“A commando is a highly trained soldier, has good endurance, and can do marches for 30-40kms. They have to be para-dropped into enemy lines and execute the action he has to and then come back. Coming back is difficult. So, a commando is a special soldier who is capable and should be ready to give his life”. 

 

Close-Quarter Battle

“My subject of expertise is a close-quarter battle. Close-quarter battles are fights with the enemy, which happens within 30 to 100 yards of distance between the commando team and the enemy. This war can be armed or unarmed battles”.

 

Martial Arts Inspiration

“I have learned Jeet Kune Do. It is Bruce lee’s art. Jeet Kune Do is not just an art, it is a philosophy. Bruce Lee is the father of mixed martial arts, as he is the first one who brought different ranges of martial arts together. The philosophical part of Jeet Kune Do is that it is simple, effective, and non-conditioning”.

Suffering From Amnesia 

“Injuries are a part of anything you do. I had a back injury and a head injury. I had amnesia. Amnesia is a part of your memory that is erased. It feels like someone pressed a delete button. You don’t know where you are or who you are. It\’s a terrible feeling”.

“I was in an unarmed combat session. The session was about to end, and one of my soldiers came to me and said my dad was no more. There were 5-10 mins for the session to end. When I heard this, I was hurt and sad. I couldn’t show my emotion, so I continued. One of a trainee came and asked me if he could wrestle with me as he was trying some new style of wrestling and wanted me to correct him. I wrestled and corrected him. One more trainee came, and he asked to grapple with him. I did and corrected him. too As the session was about to end, one trainee came and said, why don’t you grapple with me? I sensed a challenge, so I said yes. I grappled with him, and I was almost done as I had locked him, but he lifted me and threw me down. This happened because I lost focus. After all, a part of me was thinking about my dad”.

“I landed on my head. I was knocked out, and when I woke up, I was in the hospital, and I had no memory of what had happened”.

 

Favorite Bruce Lee Movie

“I think all of them are my favorite. I re-watched them, again and again, to learn everything he does. To start with, you can watch the game of death, fist of fury, enter the dragon, and the big boss”.

Marriage

“My husband is honorary Major Deepak. He is the pioneer of the close-quarters, and he is one of the sixth India to receive President rank. Our journey has been together. We have leaned on each other and worked on ideas together. Many people in the forces call us the ideal buddy pair”.

“We met in college. He was a senior. He pursued martial arts as a hobby. I always wanted to learn martial arts as I was bullied in school”.

 

Fighting Eve Teasers

“We used to go to Chowpatty for training in the morning. One morning when we were training around 7’o\’clock. We were doing our training in a secluded place. There were three rag pickers walking past, and they passed some demeaning comments. But, we didn’t want to stop our practice, so we continued. Those guys went”.

“Our practice ended around 8:30 or 9. We were exhausted. While returning, we saw these guys standing at a distance and passing remarks about women passing by. My husband said, this it is your fight”. 

 

“We had to pass from there. I put my head down and started walking. One of those guys came to inform me and started dancing and bad gesturing. I moved to the left, and he came and stood in front of me. When I moved right, he came and stood in front of me. I couldn’t be moved ahead, so I looked up. He has a grin on his face and my heart was beating fast. Looking at his face and expression, I slapped him hard. He reeled back and came angrily to headbutt me. I lifted my leg high to hit him on his head. Meanwhile, one of his friends came with a knife and slashed it across. My reflex was strong, so I moved out so my T-shirt was torn but I didn\’t get hurt”.

 

“I grabbed his hand and threw him down. People had gathered around. I just walked away\”.

\”This was ‌when I realized what is to turn your weakness into strength. If you want, you can change who you are and conquer your fear”. 

 

Women In Forces

“The percentage of women should rise in the forces. Women are good at shooting\”.

\”You should decide which path you want to walk into. There will be obstacles. Keep walking. People will doubt your capabilities”. 

 

I hope you enjoyed reading this blog and even gained the motivation and courage to overcome your fears.

 

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