Latest news with #Nikhat
India.com
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- India.com
Meet Aamir Khan's glamorous sister who has worked with Shah Rukh Khan & Akshay Kumar, stuns fans with her timeless beauty, her name is...
This Raksha Bandhan, Bollywood has been sharing sibling love on social media — and one such bond belongs to superstar Aamir Khan and his elder sister Nikhat Khan. While many may not know her, Nikhat has been part of the industry in more ways than one. Three years older than Aamir, she has maintained a strong connection with him, appearing with him at various events. Aamir himself once introduced her on a show, calling her his 'mentor.' From modelling to the movies Before acting, Nikhat worked as a model for reputed brands. Over time, she transitioned to films and has acted in over 10 projects, including some alongside her brother. Her career includes notable appearances in Mission Mangal (with Akshay Kumar), Tanhaji (with Ajay Devgn), the web series Special Ops, Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan, and the Malayalam film L2: Empuraan with Mohanlal. She was last seen in Taare Zameen Par (2025) with Aamir, where their mother also had a cameo. A producer behind a classic Nikhat wasn't just in front of the camera — she also worked behind it. She co-produced Aamir's Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke (1993) and the iconic Lagaan (2001), which became her last production venture. Today, she's more often cast in motherly roles on screen. Nikhat married Santosh Hegde, CEO of a Pune-based pharmaceutical company, and they have a son. Despite her film industry connections, she prefers a low-key life, spending most of her time with family.
The Hindu
6 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Nikhat Zareen's journey back from Paris Olympics heartbreak - Hyderabad's boxing sensation eager to start fresh
'Hyderabad is known for two things: the delicious biryani and its very own boxing ki rani.' Nikhat Zareen's wit, razor-sharp, like her punches, was on full display at a recent event in her hometown, where she cheekily corrected the emcee's introduction. It made the crowd laugh. But beneath the jest was something more: a glimpse into how Nikhat sees herself, and a gentle reminder that the confidence once shaken in Paris has been slowly and deliberately rebuilt. A year ago, Nikhat left the Paris Olympics with her dreams bruised. Her early exit was unexpected, and the sting of disappointment lingered. But time and introspection have worked their quiet magic. This version of Nikhat is steadier, wiser, and, crucially, more forgiving of herself. But despite the setbacks, Nikhat isn't someone who stays down for long. Every obstacle, she says, is fuel. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement 'There are a lot of things that have happened in the past. I don't want to focus on negatives. I just want to focus on the positive things that I have learned from Paris. It was a memorable competition for me. Not everyone gets the chance to represent India at the Olympics. I count myself lucky that at least I had the opportunity to go to the Olympics,' she said in a chat with Sportstar. ALSO READ | Anurag Thakur once again declared ineligible for BFI elections Not written in the stars If Paris taught her anything, it was that medals aren't won by hard work and belief alone. Bigger forces often come into play. 'Paris was my first experience at the Olympics. I used to hear a lot about the Olympics from my seniors, about how it is not an easy event, how winning other competitions is easier. It's not easy because once you go there, there are a lot of expectations from you and a lot of pressure from everyone,' she said. 'But when I went to the Olympics, what I experienced is that it's not just about working hard and having that belief in you that you can win medals. Sometimes it's also about destiny, it's also about luck. Sometimes that also matters a lot in your journey.' Her eyes had been on two specific contenders: China's Wu Yu and Turkey's Buse Naz Cakiroglu. Nikhat wasn't afraid to face them, but she had hoped to meet them only at the tail end of the draw. Fate, of course, had other plans. ALSO READ | From chubby kid to champion: World Cup medallist Hitesh Gulia 'had no aim of making a career out of boxing' A series of unfortunate events 'My only hope was that these two boxers should not face me in the initial rounds and that they should face me in the semifinals or the final. Unfortunately, I faced one of them, the Chinese girl, in the early rounds. It was bad luck,' she said, recalling her defeat to the then reigning Asian Games champion. And that wasn't the only factor working against her. 'That bout was in the morning at 11 o'clock. There was no time for recovery, and we also had no air conditioning in Paris. If you take everything, it was quite clear that it (succeeding there) was not written in my destiny,' Nikhat brushed off with a laugh. For someone known for her bindaas, steely exterior, it was a rare glimpse behind the armour. The Olympics had clearly left their mark — and not just physically. File | China's Wu Yu being declared winner in the women's 50kg Round of 16 boxing match against India's Nikhat Zareen at the 2024 Summer Olympics, in Paris, France, Thursday, Aug. 1, 2024. | Photo Credit: PTI 'As soon as I came back from Paris, I ate everything at home. I ate everything that I do not usually eat. I gained seven kgs as soon as I came back, within one month. I know that's very unhealthy, but what can I do? That time, my mindset was like that. I didn't care about anything. I didn't want to talk to anyone. I didn't want to go anywhere,' she explained. It was Bella, the golden retriever she and her sister had adopted, and a timely escape from routine that helped her find her footing again. 'I sat and thought that this was not going to help me. It would only spoil me. I needed to get out of that zone. I do not want to overthink and stay in the shadow of disappointment. I didn't want to be in that disappointment phase. I want to move on and come back stronger. I'm in that phase of life. So, I decided to go on a trip to Kashmir, which really helped me to come back.' ALSO READ | Dwight Muhammad Qawi, boxer who went from prison to champion, dies at 72 The comeback began with conviction — but too much, too fast. In pushing herself harder, she picked up a meniscus injury and spent nearly four months recovering. Her return came at the Elite Women's Boxing Tournament in Hyderabad last month, with one goal: re-enter the elite national camp. The two-time World Champion and home favourite made it to the final in the 51kg category but had to withdraw before her bout with Jyoti due to a minor injury. Nikhat is not trading ambition for ease. But she's not letting boxing monopolise her life either. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement 'Sometimes I feel like meri kismat hi kharaab hai (I'm just unlucky). Maybe no one is as unlucky as I am.' But despite the setbacks, Nikhat isn't someone who stays down for long. Every obstacle, she says, is fuel. 'These challenges break me, but they also make me stronger. Each obstacle makes me stronger and hungrier to achieve my goals. It's an interesting journey going on in my life right now. I am enjoying whatever life is throwing my way. I always tell myself, 'Nikhat, you are stronger. You are stronger than ever. You can handle this.' Always.' Much of her recent progress, she says, is thanks to Sunny, a coach from the Sports Authority of India with whom she began working this year. 'I spoke to the federation and TOPS about needing a coach and finally decided to work under Sunny. I was training in ASI Pune for five months under him, and he has helped me regain my fitness levels. He has played a major role after the Paris Olympics in helping me get back into the national team.' ALSO READ | BFI panel bars personal coaches for National campers Present perfect At 29, Nikhat has only one Olympics under her belt — but the lessons have been profound. Chief among them: live in the moment, both inside and outside the ring. 'I know what I want in my life. At the same time, I just don't want to be blindly focused on that because when you don't get that, then you're totally shattered. That is what happened in Paris. Every time in my mind, there was only the thought of winning a medal. I left everything for it. I didn't eat junk food for so long. I didn't focus on eating sweets because I followed a strict diet. But what happened in Paris? I got broken. Literally broken.' 'I'm pushing myself every day, telling myself that whatever has happened in the past is in the past. Let's see what the future holds for me. Paris has taught me to focus on the present. I don't care what the future holds for me, what it brings in my life.' Two major events now dominate her calendar: the World Boxing Championships and the Boxing World Cup. The 2028 Olympics are on the horizon, but she's careful not to get consumed by it. 'I just don't want to put pressure on myself like, 'Oh, what will happen in the World Championship? What will happen in LA?' No, I just want to live in the present and give my 100% in training and just enjoy my workouts, enjoy the game. I don't want to ruin my present thinking about the future. I just want to enjoy my training, enjoy my life.' ALSO READ | Former world champion Julio César Chávez Jr arrested by ICE, faces deportation She's not trading ambition for ease. But she's not letting boxing monopolise her life either. 'Being an athlete, you have to be focused and disciplined. But at the same time, I have my life also. I know that once I leave boxing, when I look back, I'll regret that didn't do this and that. At the same time, I also want to live to the fullest. I want to do everything. I want to win a medal, I want to work hard, and I want to enjoy life. Because you only live once.' Nikhat has now made it to the Indian team heading to Liverpool, England, for the World Boxing Championships in September. It will be her first international bout since the heartbreak in Paris. 'I'm working hard again. I am seeing this as the start of my Olympic cycle. So I'll keep pushing myself. This is my first competition after the Paris Olympics, and I'll have butterflies in my stomach when I go there. But once I enter the ring, my mind will be set only on winning that match and the competition.' Nikhat stormed into public view as a teenager, carving a path through the youth ranks, braving the politics of challenging Mary Kom, and refusing to wilt under pressure. She's still doing exactly that. 'I'm still that Nikhat Zareen who has that hunger to achieve and make the country proud. I'm happy that I'm finally back in the national team. Now the focus is on winning the medal.'.
The Hindu
6 days ago
- Sport
- The Hindu
Recharged and revitalised — Nikhat Zareen 2.0
'Hyderabad is known for two things: the delicious biryani and its very own boxing ki rani.' Nikhat Zareen's wit, which is as sharp as her punches, was in full flow at an event in Hyderabad recently when she one-upped the emcee with a quick lesson in how to work on his introductions. And yet, in that quip, was also an indication of how Nikhat views herself and a gentle reminder to everyone that her self-confidence, which had taken a beating a year ago in Paris, has been rebuilt. Last year, having exited the Paris Olympics much earlier than expected, Nikhat was understandably distraught. Time has passed and this Nikhat is wiser and kinder to herself. 'There are a lot of things that have happened in the past. I don't want to focus on negatives. I just want to focus on the positive things that I have learned from Paris. It was a memorable competition for me. Not everyone gets the chance to represent India at the Olympics. I count myself lucky that at least I had the opportunity to go to the Olympics,' she said in a chat with The Hindu. Not written in the stars If the Paris Olympics taught Nikhat anything, it is that there are many more factors beyond hard work and self-belief that contribute to clinching an Olympic medal. 'Paris was my first experience at the Olympics. I used to hear a lot about the Olympics from my seniors, about how it is not an easy event, how winning other competitions is easier. It's not easy because once you go there, there are a lot of expectations from you and a lot of pressure from everyone,' she said. 'But when I went to the Olympics, what I experienced is that it's not just about working hard and having that belief in you that you can win medals. Sometimes it's also about destiny, it's also about luck. Sometimes that also matters a lot in your journey.' When she landed in the French capital, Nikhat had her eyes on two boxers: China's Wu Yu and Turkey's Buse Naz Cakiroglu. While she was far from afraid of facing them, she also did not want to meet either until the very end. Fate, however, had other plans. A series of unfortunate events 'My only hope was that these two boxers should not face me in the initial rounds and that they should face me in the semifinals or the final. Unfortunately, I faced one of them, the Chinese girl, in the early rounds. It was bad luck,' she said, recalling her defeat to the then reigning Asian Games champion. That was not the only thing that went wrong for her there. 'That bout was in the morning at 11 o'clock. There was no time for recovery, and we also had no air conditioning in Paris. If you take everything, it was quite clear that it (succeeding there) was not written in my destiny,' Nikhat brushed off with a laugh. Her otherwise bindaas and steely persona dropped and she admitted, not for the first time, that she let herself go after the Paris Olympics. 'As soon as I came back from Paris, I ate everything at home. I ate everything that I do not usually eat. I gained 7 kgs as soon as I came back, within one month. I know that's very unhealthy, but what can I do? That time, my mindset was like that. I didn't care about anything. I didn't want to talk to anyone. I didn't want to go anywhere,' she explained. She was coaxed out of this rut first by Bella, the golden retriever she and her sister adopted, and then by a trip away from home, where she could recharge her spirits away from the cacophony of daily life. 'I sat and thought that this was not going to help me. It would only spoil me. I needed to get out of that zone. I do not want to overthink and stay in the shadow of disappointment. I didn't want to be in that disappointment phase. I want to move on and come back stronger. I'm in that phase of life. So I decided to go on a trip to Kashmir, which really helped me to come back.' In her enthusiasm to get back on track, she began to work twice as hard and picked up a meniscus injury, which pushed her to the sidelines for almost four months. She returned to the ring at the Elite Women's Boxing Tournament in Hyderabad, her focus being on joining the elite national camp. The two-time World champion and home favourite made it to the final in the 51kg category, but had to pull out before her bout with Jyoti due to a minor injury. 'Sometimes I feel like meri kismat hi kharaab hai (my destiny is bad)! Maybe no one is as unlucky as I am.' 'These challenges break me, but they also make me stronger. Each obstacle makes me stronger and hungrier to achieve my goals. It's an interesting journey going on in my life right now. I am enjoying whatever life is throwing my way. I always tell myself, 'Nikhat, you are stronger. You are stronger than ever. You can handle this.' Always.' Nikhat also credited Sunny, a Sports Authority of India coach, with whom she began working this year, for helping her get back on course. 'I spoke to the federation and TOPS about needing a coach and finally decided to work under Sunny. I was training in ASI Pune for five months under him, and he has helped me regain my fitness levels. He has played a major role after the Paris Olympics in helping me get back into the national team.' Present perfect The 29-year-old is just an Olympics old but has learnt the hard lesson of compartmentalising the intensity of the ring. Living in the present, she admits, is as imperative to her success in the ring as it is to her peace outside it. 'I know what I want in my life. At the same time, I just don't want to be blindly focused on that because when you don't get that, then you're totally shattered. That is what happened in Paris. Every time in my mind, there was only the thought of winning a medal. I left everything for it. I didn't eat junk food for so long. I didn't focus on eating sweets because I followed a strict diet. But what happened in Paris? I got broken. Literally broken. I'm pushing myself every day, telling myself that whatever has happened in the past is in the past. Let's see what the future holds for me. Paris has taught me to focus on the present. I don't care what the future holds for me, what it brings in my life.' The two big events on this year's calendar are the World Boxing Championships and the Boxing World Cup, while the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics is already on the back of everyone's minds. 'I just don't want to put pressure on myself like, 'Oh, what will happen in the World Championship? What will happen in LA?' No, I just want to live in the present and give my 100% in training and just enjoy my workouts, enjoy the game. I don't want to ruin my present thinking about the future. I just want to enjoy my training, enjoy my life. Nikhat is too much of a free spirit to allow room for regret and realises that finding joy in life need not be on pause just to accommodate sporting excellence. 'Being an athlete, you have to be focused and disciplined. But at the same time, I have my life also. I know that once I leave boxing, when I look back, I'll regret that didn't do this and that. At the same time, I also want to live to the fullest. I want to do everything. I want to win a medal, I want to work hard, and I want to enjoy life. Because you only live once.' Nikhat has now made it to the Indian team heading to Liverpool, England, for the World Boxing Championships in September, where she will be in action on the international stage for the first time since the Paris Olympics. 'I'm working hard again. I am seeing this as the start of my Olympic cycle. So I'll keep pushing myself. This is my first competition after the Paris Olympics, and I'll have butterflies in my stomach when I go there. 'But once I enter the ring, my mind will be set only on winning that match and the competition.' Nikhat forced her way onto the scene as a teenager, taking a circuitous route to the top, via stardom at the sub-junior nationals and Youth World Championships and ostracism for daring to challenge the legendary Mary Kom. She remained undeterred then and is even more resolute now. Amidst all the doubters and critics, she cuts a very confident figure, like a lone show of human will in the path of history. 'I'm still that Nikhat Zareen who has that hunger to achieve and make the country proud. 'I'm happy that I'm finally back in the national team. Now the focus is on winning the medal.'
Time of India
01-08-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
Focused on a medal for India: Nikhat Zareen on returning to WBC 2025:
Nikhat Zareen, India's two-time world champion boxer, is set to compete at the World Boxing Championships in Liverpool this September after recovering from a knee injury. Sidelined since October, she expressed her determination to secure a medal and represent India with pride. Indian boxer Nikhat Zareen is set to return to the international ring at the World Boxing Championships in Liverpool this September, marking her first major outing since the Paris Olympics last year. The two-time world champion, sidelined with a knee injury since October, announced her selection to the national team on Sunday, saying she is determined to 'fight for a medal and make the country proud. ' Speaking to Hyderabad Times during a recent visit to the city for a press meet ahead of the Hyderabad Marathon, Nikhat reflected on her recovery journey. 'It wasn't easy, but I always stayed strong, both physically and mentally,' she said. 'Whenever I felt tired or things got tough, I reminded myself why I started. My journey has never been easy, but each challenge made me stronger, and I chose to push through no matter what. ' You Can Also Check: Hyderabad AQI | Weather in Hyderabad | Bank Holidays in Hyderabad | Public Holidays in Hyderabad The 28-year-old's injury kept her away from the ring for three months, disrupting the momentum she had hoped to carry forward from her Olympic debut. Now training at the national camp in Patiala, Nikhat has already started to find her rhythm, recently winning silver at the Elite Women's Boxing Tournament in Hyderabad. Looking ahead, she said, 'It feels great to represent India again after a long break. I've worked hard for this and I'm focused on bringing home a medal. I believe this is just the start for me.'
The Hindu
28-07-2025
- Sport
- The Hindu
Injury behind her, Nikhat Zareen eyes third World Championship title
Having made it to the Indian team for the World Boxing Championships, Nikhat Zareen believes that she heads to Liverpool, England, with a renewed sense of belief in her ability to bag yet another medal on the global stage. 'I'm looking forward to being back on the international scene after a long time. Everyone wants me to perform well there, win a medal and make the country proud, but, obviously, more than them, I want to bring back that old Nikhat who used to win medals at the World Championship. I want to bring back that old Nikhat who has that hunger to win medals at the Worlds,' she told Sportstar. Nikhat will compete in her preferred 51kg category at the inaugural edition of the event, which is being conducted by World Boxing, the newly formed international governing body for the sport. ALSO READ | From chubby kid to champion: World Cup medallist Hitesh Gulia 'had no aim of making a career out of boxing' The 28-year-old returns to the Indian national setup for the first time since the 2024 Paris Olympics after impressing at the Elite Women's Boxing Tournament held here earlier this month. She, however, pulled out of the final citing injury. Self-belief A two-time gold medallist at the World Championships (Istanbul 2022 and New Delhi 2023), Nikhat reiterated that she is capable of putting bad form behind her and bringing glory to India once again. 'Sometimes it [defeat] happens. It was not in my destiny, maybe. I don't want to underestimate myself or say that I'm not good enough to win an Olympic medal. I will keep pushing myself no matter what. FILE PHOTO - Zareen Nikhat of Team India makes her way to the ring prior to her Women's 50kg preliminary round match against Yu Wu of Team China on day six of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at North Paris Arena on August 01, 2024 in Paris, France. | Photo Credit: Getty Images 'Not everyone can win a world championship gold medal, not just once, but twice. I'm still that Nikhat who has the hunger to achieve and make the country proud. I'm happy that I'm finally back in the national team, the focus is now on just winning the medal,' she added. Injury comeback Nikhat dealt with a meniscus injury recently, which required a few months of rehab. While admitting that her recovery wasn't easy, she said that she focused on the larger goals to ensure she made a successful and quick comeback. 'The recovery wasn't easy, but I always kept myself strong, both physically and mentally. Whenever I felt like it [the comeback] is not going to happen or that it was becoming tougher every day, I always reminded myself about why I started on this path. This is not the end,' she stated. With the LA Olympics less than three years away, Nikhat emphasized that the disappointment in Paris has perhaps spurred her on further in her pursuit of her sport's biggest prize. 'My ultimate dream is to win an Olympic medal. I'm not gonna give up so easily.'
