Hyderabad-based G. Amrutha Reddy recently achieved an amazing feat to mark three years since the formation of Telangana. She slept on 1096 nails for a solid 2 minutes 58 seconds as her father, Gopal Reddy, a well-known Karate master, laid 36 granite stones on her one after the other, and broke them using a hammer! Earlier, she broke 365 tiles on her head to mark the first year of the state’s formation.
The little girl, who is already a black belt in Karate, has dreams of going to the Olympics. “I want to win a medal for the country,” she says, with a wide smile. For Amrutha, a Class VII student, life is all about the sport. She might be a child, but her clarity of vision is surprising.
When asked if these stunts don’t scare her, she replies with utter confidence, “If you practice hard, nothing is impossible or difficult. I wasn’t even in a bit of pain because I have been taught the right technique.”
Her father, Gopal, tells us how she grew up in the sport. “She has been doing Karate since the age of two. I always felt it necessary to ensure women are empowered and can look after themselves. I have two daughters and both of them love Karate now,” he gushes.
While kids her age would generally gorge on fast foods like burgers and pizzas alongside chocolates, Amrutha says that she has never even tasted them.
“I need to have a discipline in food habits to achieve my goals. I feel very good whenever I achieve something. Presently, I participate in several national tournaments. I want to begin participating internationally too but for that, my father wants me to be perfect. He is a strict disciplinarian when it comes to training. I am working towards my hand and leg synchronisation and he has made it clear that only after I get that right, will I be able to go so far,” she adds.
