Calling the

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There is a noticeable excitement in Heena Shidhu’s voice when she shares that she has moved to Mumbai. For, the ace Indian shooter hailing from Patiala is enjoying the companionship of her partner, Ronak Pandit, another celebrated shooter. Considered to be one of the poster couples of Indian sport, Heena and Ronak made for a pretty picture as bride and groom in February this year.

Now juggling her time between international tournaments, training, Ronak’s upcoming academy and their personal life, she feels life could not be better than this.
“We were friends earlier. Rather, we stayed friends for four years before he popped the question (one-and-a-half years ago). We got married this year,” says Heena, a pistol expert who won India a gold and silver at 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi. She met Ronak, son of famous shooter and Arjuna Award winner Ashok Pandit, during training camps, and now they plan to make shooting a viable sport in India though the academy — Ronak Pandit Shooting Centre in Goregaon, Mumbai.
It means a lot to have a partner who understands your profession, feels Heena. “He knows what I need and understands me so well. He is my guiding light who not only takes care of me but helps me with training as well. His support matters so much that I look out for Ronak whenever I am confused. Though I have a formal coach (Anatolii Piddubnyi), Ronak personally takes care of my training,” Heena explains.
And having Ronak as a coach has its own perks. “He is never too harsh. He has his own subtle way of telling me what I am missing or doing wrong. Though he is a little strict with others, I get special attention,” she adds, laughing.
Being an active support for Ronak in his shooting academy, Heena says she will stand by her husband’s dream. “He always wanted to start his own shooting academy as we don’t have good training schools in India. Most shooters train privately, and therefore we lack the talent. Ronak decided to start this academy, and presently he is totally involved with the project while I am preparing for the world championship,” says Heena. “Ronak is not actively shooting, but both of us are going to prepare for the World Cup in Germany,” she adds.
Meanwhile, Ronak is also busy pampering his new bride. “We hang out together, go for movies and hang out with friends. He knows I am fond of street food and he often takes me out for some local stuff,” shares Heena. Her shift to Mumbai is also welcome, “There is not much of a change as I am mostly travelling,” she adds.
Calling Ronak the rock of her life, Heena feels that life is on the right track now. “He is always there for me. Now, I also belong to a shooting family. Nothing can be better than this. I see a lot of myself in Ronak. We both are ambitious. Strangely, we don’t seek each other’s approval while making our career decisions, but there has never been a clash as we understand each other and our dreams so well,” ends Heena.