Her Game, Her Rules: Overcoming Gender Bias in Indian Sports

Even though Indian sportswomen like P.V. Sindhu and Mary Kom enjoy immense global popularity, gender disparity still plays spoilsport in the development and visibility of women in Indian sports. There’s still discrimination in relation to resources, capital, media, and leadership. Informed by feminist theory and intersectionality, this study explores how caste, class, and regional inequities add to the struggles and pathways for sportswomen. The analysis is qualitative and of an exploratory nature, based on secondary sources such as policy papers, media reports, academic research, and case studies. It also draws on comparative framing from international gender equality campaigns including Australia’s Women in Sport and the UK’s This Girl Can in order to situate the Indian context. The results show how programmes, such as Khelo India, are helping to raise the profile of women in sports and grow opportunities for them, yet are undercut by poor implementation, cultural barriers, and a lack of grassroots support. The research suggests that systemic changes are needed, such as gender audit in sports bodies, sensitisation programmes, equitable media representation, and effective policy interventions. These are the necessary measures to be taken, so that a more open, impelling, and fair ecosystem of sport may be established in India, while also providing leadership to policymakers, educationalists, sponsors, and civil society.