Women have made their mark everywhere. These stories are very inspiring.
There are so many success stories of women around us. Women excel irrespective of the field they choose. Additionally, some also take a giant leap away from their physical and psychological comfort. And excel!
Seema Rao is one of them. Today, she is also known as India's Wonder Woman. It is due to her ability to fight, defend and an unending list of achievements to her credit.
Her life story is nothing less than a film's script! The only difference is that her experiences are real and not a part of any film.
Medals of Honor
Seema's list of achievements seems never-ending...
- She is a Doctor
- India's only female Commando Trainer
- A shooting instructor, a firefighter, a scuba diver, a medalist in Rock climbing
- One of the only 10 women in the world certified in Jeet Kune Do. Jeet Kune Do is a martial art form created by Bruce Lee.
Patriotism in blood
Home is the first school, and parents are the first inspiration. Seema's father, Prof. Ramakant Sinari, helped in freeing Goa from the Portuguese.
Patriotism and love for the country were deep-rooted in Seema since her childhood. India's struggle for independence and its journey was another incident that had inspired her to serve the country.
A career in Combat.
Even after marriage, Seema continued to learn martial arts and shooting while pursuing her education in Medicine. One of the reasons was her husband, Major Deepak Rao.
He inspired her to learn martial arts. Seema is a 7th-degree black belt holder in military martial arts as well.
After becoming a Doctor, Seema did her MBA in Crisis Management.
The continuous thought of doing something for the country steered her towards training the soldiers of the Indian Armed Forces.
India's Wonder Woman: With a record-breaking skill in combat training
Seema's strength lies in hand-to-hand and close combat skills, including reflex shooting using rifles & pistols and knives & bare-handed Combat.
She also runs an Unarmed Commando Combat Academy that trains Jeet Kune Do and other martial arts to the Indian Forces and civilians.
Training the protectors
Seema has provided training to almost all the elite units of the Indian Armed Forces, such as
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The NSG Black Cats, MARCOS, GARUD, Para commandos, BSF
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The Army Corps Battle Schools & and commando wing
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National Police Academy
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Army Officers Training Academy and the Police Quick Response Teams.
She earned her IAF Para Wings in 2009 after enrolling for the official IAF Para Jump course. The IAF Chief invited her after she trained the GARUD commandos.
Reluctance to Acceptance.
Seema broke the stereotype that only men were fit to be in the Armed Forces. And also gained respect and acceptance from men and women alike.
Through her training regimen, Seema gained acceptance and respect from the trainee commandos, who were initially reluctant about getting trained by a woman.
By a woman, for the women.
Seema's tailored a safety programme for women to equip them while dealing with potential perpetrators.
The programme is called DARE: Defence Against Rape & Eve-Teasing. It helps train women physically and mentally to tackle harassment and other related issues.
Seema's selfless contribution to the nation has earned her World Peace Award at World Peace Congress in Malaysia and the US President's Volunteer Service Award. Her story is an inspiration for women worldwide.
While this is no ordinary feat, there are regular everyday success stories -- which are equally inspiring. They seem to tell every girl to go beyond their comfort zone -- Just like Seema Rao did!
