India's top taekwondo player Latika Bhandari walks a long road

India's top-ranked taekwondo player Latika Bhandari has been walking a long road in her bid to make a non-conventional sport popular in India.

Back in her childhood years in Nainital, she used to walk 8-10 kms in a day without thinking twice about it. Now 28, she does not have the time to afford such long walks, but she still disappears on Sundays to find the solace she knew in walking.

"For people from the hills, walking 10 kilometres a day is a daily part of our lives. I used to walk two kilometres to my school, three-four kilometres to the playground. Later when I took up taekwondo professionally, this lifestyle gave me an edge over others," Latika told The Bridge.

"I do not get the time for such long walks any more, but every Sunday morning I make sure to leave my phone, social media and the whole hopscotch of the week behind and go for a long walk like before. I sit with a book somewhere in nature's lap, I get some precious me-time," she said.

Now 28 years old, Latika has been bearing the woes of being the country's best player at a sport which not many follow. But she still said sports has helped her find unity - both within herself and in the outside world.

"To bring my emotions in perfect sync with my mind and body is the first thing taekwondo taught me. Later, I found the unity that professional sports brings within a group representing the same team. It may be an individual sport, but how we support each other and build team spirit is something that has to be seen to be believed," she said.

Long before Latika thought of herself as a professional, she took up the sport when her father enrolled her in taekwondo class for general fitness. Latika's father is a part of Assam Rifles in the Indian Army, which meant that discipline had always run scrupulously in the family.

"He stressed the importance of waking up early in the morning and maintaining a physical fitness regime," she said about her childhood.

Taekwondo, being a non-conventional sport in India, made the vision a bit jaded for Latika until she saw her elder brother making giant strides in the sport. But there are only a few who are familiar with the game. Has that never been enough of a reason for her to quit?

"We are here to blame. In India, nobody asks you about your performance at Asian Championships. The tournaments where we manage to get some little footage, we have no record of winning medals there. How will people be familiar then? I have never thought much about it, it was compulsory in school and that's how I learned it," she said.

Notwithstanding the lack of recognition, Latika remains the country's top taekwondo player. She has participated in a total of 26 registered fights so far, winning ten out of them at an impressive rate of 38.5%. Her highest world ranking was 19.