"My parents wanted me to stay at home and look after my siblings. I have three brothers. My mother said I should not be wasting time by playing football," says Sunakali, now 15 years old, adding that when she decided to play despite their reluctance, her parents told her to come back home as a winner and not bring shame upon them by losing.
But Team Mugu lost their first competitive match against Humla. Following a 2-2 draw, Humla won in the tie breaker. The documentary 'Sunakali', made by journalist Bhojraj Bhat, captures Team Mugu's journey, from their first loss and tears that followed to the ultimate victory in the finals against Tikapur.
Pushkar Ghimire, a former employee of Good Neighbors (GNI), the NGO that organized the district level football tournament for girls, who was involved in the filming process, claims that they didn't intend to make a documentary on Sunakali or Team Mugu. They were actually just filming the women's football championship in general when they saw that Sunakali was a player to watch out for.
And Jeet Bahadur Malla, founder of Rara Dynamic Secondary School in Mugu where Sunakali now studies in grade 10, agrees and says that she has a natural flair for the game. And now that her parents no longer oppose her decision to play football, one would think there is nothing standing between Sunakali and football. But you would be surprised.
Life, in Mugu, is tough, more so for women whose primary responsibilities are household chores and looking after their families. The district itself lies at the bottom of Nepali districts in terms of human development index, and has the lowest life expectancy (39 years) and literacy rate (9%) for women. Also, 63% of girls aged 15 to 19 are married.
However, on the bright side, Jeet Bahadur says that following Sunakali's feat and Team Mugu's success, more and more girls are being enrolled in schools in Mugu. "That's a start of a revolution of sorts," he says explaining that there has been a change in the mindsets of the villagers and they are now starting to believe that girls too can achieve something if given the opportunity.
"Moreover, it's the girls who are now starting to demand that they be allowed to play football and do other things they want and not be forced to give all their time to household chores and raising their siblings," he adds, and for this he credits Sunakali and the girls of Team Mugu who showed the stamina and the resilience that was unmatched by the other teams.
But for Sunakali and the girls of Team Mugu, things have been far from easy. First they had to battle against the society that considered it 'improper' for girls to play football and when they finally relented, it was Mugu's geography itself that posed a serious challenge: There was not a single large enough field where they could practice.
Then came the journey to Kailali. Not only were they competing in a national level tournament and hence incredibly nervous, this was also the first time they would be leaving Mugu, the first time they were to set foot on the Tarai plains, and the first time they would see bullock carts, rickshaws, and airplanes.
"We felt completely out of place. We even had motion sickness for the first time as we riding on a tractor," says Sunakali explaining that up until then she didn't know that a completely different world lay beyond Mugu.
When they won the tournament and came back, the girls received a warm welcome: The Nepal Army felicitated them, and there were villagers lined up at the Talcha airport to greet them. The locals had even arranged for horses for them – another first for the girls as it was unusual for women in Mugu to ride horses. People in all the villages along the way shouted slogans as they made their way home. 'How is Sunakali? Like Messi!' chanted the crowd.
Some of the girls' parents were upset that Sunakali got so much attention that their girls' contribution to the game faded in comparison. But there are many who vouch that had it not been for Sunakali who showed great stamina and prowess in the field and scored crucial goals, Team Mugu would not have achieved this feat.
The documentary 'Sunakali' added to her soaring popularity especially after it won two awards at the 12th edition of the Kathmandu International Mountain Film Festival (KIMFF) in 2014. Till now, the documentary has been screened in 44 places with 12 subtitles around the world and around15 more screenings are in the pipeline, says the documentary director Bhat. The documentary has also won two awards in Nepal and 13 international awards.
However, Sunakali who is all set to appear for the SLC exams this year, says that though many people in different parts of the world have seen the documentary she hasn't seen it even once. Bhat also confesses that he hasn't been able to get Sunakali to watch the documentary and says, 'It's easier to get to New York than it is to reach Mugu,' making one wonder just how he managed to film Team Mugu's journey in the first place.
"I don't know when, if ever, I'll get to watch the documentary," says Sunakali adding that she really wants to see it once, just out of curiosity because she has heard so much about it. She says it's always at the back of her mind even as she prepares for her exams. She also wonders what fate has in store for her once her class 10 exams are over, and whether she'll be able to study further. "My friends got married because they were unable to study. They don't play football anymore. But I want to study and play football. I'll give it my best shot," says Sunakali, burdened by uncertainties and anxiety over her future.
Winning the tournament, being named the best player, and having a documentary made on her did nothing much to change her fate. News that different clubs and organizations would be taking her and four of her friends for football training had reached her time and again, but nothing ever came out of it. She often finds herself wondering if her dream of becoming a professional footballer will ever come true, now that those who promised to bring her to Kathmandu for further training have put her at the bottom of their priority lists.
And now Bhat is the one making promises again. He says that he's still talking to different football clubs and something concrete might come out of it sometime in mid-April but he is also quick to add that 'this is Nepal and you can never be too certain'. He also claims to be waiting till the SLC exams are over to let Sunakali and her family know that there are quite a few sponsorships available for her further studies. Bhat also says that he will hand over the funds collected on her behalf at different film festivals along with screening the documentary for Sunakali and the other girls of Team Mugu at Pokhara within this year.
For now, the football star of Mugu finds her dreams waning a little every day. Promises were made so often that she doesn't want to bank on it anymore. Placing her trust in Bhat is definitely not ideal, given the fact that he has already started making excuses. So while the documentary 'Sunakali' goes places, the girl Sunakali stays in her little hometown, wrapped up in her chores, wishing for a miracle.
The photographs have been extracted from the documentary 'Sunakali'.
(With field inputs from Suman Malla)
Sunakali screening at HUB
