Shooter Neeru told mother PM Modi would meet her. She has now made it possible

Before leaving for the Asian Games, Neeru told her mother PM Modi would meet her if she performed well. Her record-breaking trap golds in Nagoya have brought that promise within reach.Neeru Dhanda won gold at the Asian Games and wants to meet PM Modi. (Image: PTI)New Delhi,Sep 30, 2026 17:23 IST"Mother, PM Modi will meet me himself. I will do such a good job that PM Modi will meet me himself. He will also feed us food there. PM Modi ji will call us to meet him," Neeru's mother, Sudesh Devi, told IANS, recalling what her daughter had told her before leaving for the Asian Games.On Tuesday, in a rain-hit final in Nagoya, Neeru did the part that was in her hands. She became the first Indian woman to win an individual Asian Games gold in trap shooting, setting a new Games record with 28 hits out of 30.Her mother, however, had no idea she had just watched her daughter make history.There was no television or smartphone at home in Sangatpura, Jind. Sudesh was on her way to collect the family's wheat ration under the Below Poverty Line scheme when a journalist called to tell her that Neeru had won gold. At first, she thought he was referring to the silver medal Neeru had won earlier in the women's trap team event. "When I got to know about this, I was on my way to collect my Below Poverty Line (BPL) wheat ration. We are poor; we have zero balance," Sudesh told ANI.Neeru had helped India win silver in the women's trap team event alongside Aashima Ahlawat and Manisha Keer. A day later, she produced the performance that changed the colour of her medal. She topped qualification with 118 out of 125, matching Qatar's Ray Bassil, before holding her nerve in difficult rain to win the individual final. On Wednesday, there was more gold. Neeru teamed up with Kynan Chenai to win the mixed team trap title, producing 34 points in the final and setting a new Asian Games record. It was India's first medal in the mixed team trap event. Neeru Dhanda and Kynan Chenai with the mixed team trap gold medal (Screengrab from SonyLIV) The second gold also carried its own poignancy. Neeru had dedicated Tuesday's individual title to the late Raja Randhir Singh, India's first Asian Games gold medallist in trap, who won the men's event in 1978. Her gold came 48 years after his.For Chenai, there was little surprise in seeing Neeru deliver.Speaking to India Today ahead of the Games, the 35-year-old had pointed to her recent form as a source of confidence for the Indian shotgun group. Neeru had won individual gold at the ISSF World Cup in Lonato in July, becoming the first Indian woman to win an individual World Cup gold in trap.SHOOTING OBSTACLESThat Lonato victory had made Neeru one of India's shooters to watch in Nagoya. What followed has turned her into one of the faces of India's shotgun campaign.It is a rise that began with another shooter in the family. Neeru was inspired to take up shooting after watching her cousin Lakshay Sheoran, who won a silver medal in men's trap at the 2018 Asian Games. She initially used Lakshay's gun and moved to the Madhya Pradesh Shooting Academy in Bhopal in 2019, where access to equipment and ammunition made it possible for her to pursue the sport seriously.The journey has not been without setbacks. Barely 10 days before the Asian Games, Neeru was hospitalised in Bhopal after a severe bout of flu, with H1N1 suspected. She was on a liquid diet for five days and could not train for several weeks. Her participation in the Games itself had been uncertain.Her personal coach Mansher Singh urged her to put the illness behind her and focus on the target. She eventually arrived in Nagoya and produced the biggest results of her career.Neeru's prediction to her mother had seemed ambitious when she made it. In Nagoya, she gave it some substance, becoming the first Indian woman to win an individual Asian Games gold in trap before adding another gold in the mixed team event with Chenai.Now, all that remains is for Neeru to meet PM Modi. Having been one of the faces of India's shooting campaign in Nagoya, she may yet get the chance to tell him about the promise she made to her mother.- Ends