Latest news with #Tanisha
India Today
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- India Today
So, you can't even watch Reels without 2X speed? Experts have something to say
You know something's off when you're watching a soulful rendition of a favourite song at 2X speed. In an anyway 30-second snippet, you hit the 2X button to focus on that one line you love the best."I subconsciously developed the habit of watching Reels at 2X speed and didn't think much of it, until one day, I caught myself doing the same with a video of one of my favourite songs," says Manya, a 29-year-old working professional from Delhi."My brother, who's also a music lover, was sitting next to me and pointed it out. That's when it really hit me. My attention span was probably further deteriorating," she Reels, which is already a short-form video format, at double speed has become the new normal for Instagram users. In March this year, the platform introduced a feature that lets users fast-forward a Reel by simply long-tapping on either edge of the screen. Do you also find it difficult to complete tasks without being distracted by your phone? (Photo: Unsplash) 'Today, we're globally launching the ability to play an Instagram Reel at 2X speed. This has been a highly requested feature from our community, and we hope being able to fast forward helps give you more control over your Reels experience as you connect with friends over content you love and enjoy,' Instagram move came after Meta extended the time limit for Reels to 3 sped-up content - A generic trendOther video platforms like YouTube and TikTok have already introduced this feature. Even on streaming platforms such as Netflix and Prime Video, viewers can fast-forward movies and shows.'I am an avid movie watcher, but it pains me when I'm in a theatre and find it impossible to skip a boring scene. Whenever I watch a movie at home on a streaming app, I skip unwanted songs and even scenes that I feel aren't substantial,' says 31-year-old Tanisha, admitting that she isn't very proud of this new content consumption habit she has it's not new for people to use this feature with long-form videos, applying it to already short video formats raises may seem like just another feature, getting used to it can significantly affect your attention span, cognitive abilities, and even relationships. This could possibly be the reason why you find it hard to read a book or watch a movie without a phone in your on our behaviour, attention span'Our tolerance for both slow and deep content has diminished because of this development. Our brains develop an intolerance toward slow-paced content, including deep conversations and long books as well as peaceful moments, because we constantly experience fast-paced content,' says Sheena Sood, psychologist and counsellor, P. D. Hinduja Hospital and Medical Research Centre in Mumbai.'The fact that people now prefer watching even these fast-paced videos at double speed suggests they are becoming increasingly impatient. Even a second feels longer, and they want to get to the point faster. This implies that our baseline for patience and tolerance of content length is continually shrinking,' adds Dr Vishnu Gade, consultant, psychiatry, Arete if you watch short videos at 2X speed, you may find it harder to learn new things or pay attention to the details when a loved one is speaking to you - that's what health experts overload and time pressure are among the key reasons why the 2X speed on Reels (and also in general) has people hooked on experts agree that occasional use of 2X speed, especially for previously seen content, does not cause harm. But it is likely to be a problem when everything, including music, feels slow to is clear that this new normal of consuming short-form content is certainly not without a list of cons. And it is not just limited to altering your attention watching Reels or short clips at double speed increases the risk of superficial engagement. In simple words, you may not be connecting deeply with the content, which eventually results in lesser information comprehension is another by-product of faster playback.'Faster playback will impair understanding of complex ideas like maths, chemistry, and problem-solving things. Because the speed is increased, the person's capacity to understand and grasp the whole concept may sometimes be reduced,' explains Dr decreased creativity, impatience in real life, weak empathy, impaired emotional engagement, fast talking, and emotional instability can also develop as a subsequent short-form content at double speed further fuels our addiction for instant gratification and rewires how we process information.'Platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels already cater to short bursts of content, and the 2X speed feature amplifies the demand for instant gratification. This constant dopamine stimulation can impair our brain's ability to focus deeply, making it harder to engage with long-term content or real-life conversations. It's not just about shorter attention spans – it's about rewiring how we process our information altogether,' says Dr Vikram Sharma, senior consultant neurologist, CARE Hospitals, a nutshell, experts say that there is a long-term cognitive and emotional impact which influences how people think, feel, learn, and relate to media and interpersonal news: Attention span is trainableBeing able to maintain attention on one task at a time and completing them suggests you have a good attention span. You need it to learn new things, to build relationships as it lets you be fully present and helps with deep also need a good attention span for mental peace. Mental health experts say a scattered mind generates feelings of anxiety and dissatisfaction that people can't even are ways with which you can mitigate the impact of watching sped-up content and re-train your attention span. It starts with small yet consistent steps. Like, challenging yourself to have tea without checking your phone. Or, taking short screen breaks several times a multitasking, essentially. And reduce digital distractions. You can use features like DND, silent mode to stay away from your phone while working, reading a book, or performing any other deep work or focus time management. A simple (not really) way to that: 'Sit without interruptions (while working) for 25-minute sessions, take a 5-minute break, then restart. Gradually, increase duration to train the brain to stay focused longer,' suggests Dr Gade.'The brain needs fifteen minutes without interruptions to reorient itself properly. The activities such as reading, handwriting, drawing and cooking serve as helpful tools to rebuild attention skills,' adds stepping out into a park, observing nature, and taking a break for 15–30 minutes without any digital distractions to relearn your focus well, exercising regularly, eating brain-friendly foods (like omega-3 fatty acids, green leafy vegetables, nuts and water), and avoiding processed food and meditating will also and indulging in activities like reading books, puzzles, painting, playing a musical instrument, or learning a new language is a must. They enhance cognitive Reel advertisement
Indian Express
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila to work with psychologist to help them break into top tier in mixed doubles badminton
Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila, mixed doubles partners, are both animated and headstrong individuals who have started winning on the badminton court. Their combined on-court game is suitably vivacious, but temperaments can range from methodical to mercurial, going from 0 to 100 in a matter of moments. The three coaches responsible for raising their performance at Hyderabad – Manu Attri, Tan Kim Her and Pullela Gopichand, understand the mixed doubles dynamic and that Tanisha and Dhruv both need an emotional referee, a both-sides negotiator. Their recent on-boarding by Mumbai-based Reliance Foundation is expected to deliver the solution: a joint psychologist for India's rising XD duo, who will smoothen the edges and help the pairing through firefighting, albeit gently, should disagreements arise. 'A psychologist is very important because sometimes Dhruv and I might not be on the same page. A professional can help both of us understand situations better,' Tanisha, now World No 18, says. A dedicated mental trainer will be assigned to the two, in coming days, besides them gaining access to physios and trainers. Dhruv, is a super-driven Ludhiana shuttler, a hard hitter and very prone to allowing aggression to consume his composure. Much like Chirag Shetty, he likes taking on plenty of responsibility and can judge himself harshly in case of mistakes. His back-court game is slowly getting nuanced as Attri and Malaysian coach Tan drill in patience into him, and his flair begins to construct clever points. But the shuttler who moved from up north to Hyderabad in early teens, could do with some pristine Punjabi levity in life, learn to enjoy the battles and delegate pressure to his younger partner. Tanisha, still only 21, is a cannister of uncontainable energy. Equally ambitious, she can be crackling at the net with her fearless aggression and diving around midcourt. She's already an Olympian, she needs to make this combination of fusillade and fiendfyre, work. Fire and ice combinations are known to temper each other's shortcomings. 4 Chinese and 4 Malaysian pairings are ranked above the Indians, besides others. 'It's going to take a lot of time to crack the Top 10,' says Dhruv, 25. 'Mixed doubles is tough. We have to improve everything, skill, techniques, how we handle pressure, and how we train. So the support – of coaches, physios, trainers, psychologists becomes important,' Dhruv says. The pairing enter the Malaysia Masters upbeat after the Sudirman Cup showing, where they were the sole spark in the Indonesia tie. The duo had a good run at German Open in early summer and have been gutsy playing the unbreakable Chinese, though the Top 5 scalps haven't fetched up. Yet. 'In the opening match at Sudirman (where India led with XD) there was lots of pressure, but despite trailing 16-19, we beat Indonesia. We went with the flow, and we have both been trying to sort out (intensity-related nerves) because it's crucial in last stages,' Dhruv says. What works is the immense respect Dhruv has for Tanisha. 'She's great on court, no matter what happens, she pushes herself to win every point. Right now, I'll change nothing about her. Maybe she can be more aggressive,' Dhruv says. Fiery game knows raging game. While Tanisha's front-court errors (mostly precision ones) draw cluckings from critics, her coaches and partner reckon she can Hulk out even more like a Goan gush with her screaming aggression, and not merely tiptoe. Still, mixed doubles invariably fragments into 80 percent of back court responsibility for the male player. 'Tanisha needs to be prepared for the 20 percent,' he says. Her energy though is a perfect foil for the brooding back court enforcer. Away from the court, neither will back off easily and given their flaring natures, a common psychologist can be a useful arbiter. Both need to be physically and mentally ready for long rallies which these days easily skim 70-80 shots. 'Actually, we are prepared for long rallies, and our drills are geared towards those prolonged exchanges. Defenses are so good now, that you can't keep hammering down smashes,' Dhruv says. 'Our mentality is similar – both aggressive, so that helps.' Their serving is getting better with every international outing, but the first three strokes – vastly different in men's doubles and mixed doubles – are a challenge for Dhruv. The duo came together in 2023 after their earlier partnerships in mens doubles and mixed were fraying due to fitness issues for partners. Dhruv was persuaded to stay patient, a second priority, as Tanisha surged to qualify for Paris Olympics in women's doubles with Ashwini Ponappa. December of 2024 saw both reorient and prioritise XD and they entered Top 20 earlier this month. 'It's going pretty well but I have to take more initiative as compared to men's doubles,' he says. Like Tanisha shifted from Dubai to Hyderabad at 16, Dhruv too had found his early years while moving from Ludhiana, grappling with a mix of loneliness and excessive self-pressure to show big results. Mixed doubles partnerships around the world are notorious for turning combustible. It will help to have a common psychologist act as a bookmark to keep them on the same page. There's a bunch of entertaining chapters to be written on this duo.
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Business Standard
20-05-2025
- Sport
- Business Standard
Like minded Tanisha-Dhruv reviving mixed doubles magic in India with flair
'We both have a similar mentality because we really want to achieve something, and that's pushing us together.' These were the words of India's latest badminton sensation, Dhruv Kapila, while talking to ESPN, who, along with his partner Tanisha Crasto, has put India back in the spotlight in mixed doubles badminton. The duo won India's only points in the recently concluded Sudirman Cup 2025 when they beat Indonesia's Rehan Kusharjanto and Gloria Widjaja 10–21, 21–18, 21–19 in the second Group D match. While India eventually lost the tie 1–4 and missed a playoff spot, they offered bright hopes for the Indian badminton fraternity, which has been struggling in recent times, especially in a category where India is usually given little to no chance of success. How Tanisha and Dhruv are reshaping the mixed doubles landscape? Indian badminton hasn't often boasted success in mixed doubles, but that may be changing thanks to Tanisha Crasto and Dhruv Kapila. Since joining forces in late 2023, they've shown rapid progress, climbing to a career-best ranking of 17 in April 2025. Their games complement each other — Tanisha's court coverage and angles pair seamlessly with Dhruv's strength from the back. They credit their chemistry to a shared ambition and mutual understanding. With backing from the Reliance Foundation, they now have access to high-performance support rarely available to Indian mixed doubles players, giving them a serious edge going forward. Mixed doubles has rarely been India's strong suit in international badminton. Apart from trailblazers like Jwala Gutta and V Diju, who were the first Indian pair to enter the top 10, the country has seen few standout performances. Short-term partnerships have come and gone, and in team events, this category has often been seen as a weak link. However, Tanisha and Dhruv's recent performance in the Sudirman Cup may have started to shift that narrative. Their victory against Indonesia gave India a much-needed win in a crucial tie — something unthinkable in mixed doubles just a year ago. How Tanisha-Dhruv partnership came together Tanisha and Dhruv felt their partnership had real potential from the outset. When they made the finals at the Syed Modi International in November 2024, they sensed they had found the right fit. Dhruv, who had long wanted to focus on mixed doubles, finally had a partner whose style matched his. Tanisha agreed that they clicked instantly and decided to prioritise this format. Their win over a pair who had previously beaten them was particularly sweet, as Tanisha explained — it gave them huge confidence and set the tone for what they could achieve as a team. Who is Dhruv Kapila? A native of Punjab, Dhruv Kapila was introduced to professional badminton early, enrolling at the Gopichand Academy by age 10. He initially made his mark in men's doubles, becoming India's No. 2 with M R Arjun. Injuries to his partner, however, forced a change of course. Dhruv always felt he had the skills for mixed doubles but lacked a suitable partner until Tanisha came along. With her, he's now able to fully utilise his attacking strengths and tactical smarts. He believes their shared goal and hunger to improve are what keep their partnership strong and growing. Who is Tanisha Crasto? Tanisha Crasto's path to Indian badminton started in Dubai, where she was born and raised. At 16, she made the bold move to Hyderabad to chase her dream of playing for India. She's already represented the country in women's doubles at the Olympics, but her return to mixed doubles has been especially impactful. After her previous partner, Ishaan Bhatnagar, was sidelined by injury, Tanisha adapted quickly. She sees her current pairing with Dhruv as a natural fit, crediting their progress to shared goals and strong in-game understanding. Her speed and anticipation make her vital in front-court play. India's ongoing badminton challenges Despite this promising duo, Indian badminton faces a broader downturn. Top singles players have seen a dip in form, and men's doubles has taken a hit due to injuries to stars Satwik and Chirag. Mixed doubles, long considered an afterthought, now offers a potential path forward — if India can develop more strong pairs. Tanisha and Dhruv feel the lack of competitive training partners domestically holds them back. They stress the need for long-term pairings and dedicated coaching to raise the level. For now, they remain one of the few bright spots in an otherwise difficult phase for Indian badminton.
Vox
15-05-2025
- General
- Vox
'Dry texting,' explained
is a senior correspondent for Vox, where she covers American family life, work, and education. Previously, she was an editor and writer at the New York Times. She is also the author of four novels, including the forthcoming Bog Queen, which you can preorder here This story originally appeared in Kids Today, Vox's newsletter about kids, for everyone. Sign up here for future editions. A few days ago, a group of teenagers taught me the term 'dry texting.' It's anything that indicates 'a change in the vibe of the conversation,' Tanisha, 18, told me. Someone who usually texts in all caps could revert to lowercase. They could text back only short replies, or comments that don't invite a response — a 'conversation ender,' as Joanne, 18, put it. Dry texting is the most common way kids at her school find out someone is mad at them, Akshaya, also 18, told me. I was talking with the three teens — co-hosts of the podcast Behind the Screens — about something that came up on a recent episode that intrigued me. They argued that phones, texting, and social media could make it easier for teenagers to avoid conflict with each other, by providing them with numerous passive-aggressive methods of showing disapproval. The teens' comments stuck out to me because adults typically think of phones as igniting confrontation between young people, not the other way around. One Ohio school district, for example, banned phones in schools over concerns that students were using social media to orchestrate fights. But as much as texting and social media can amplify disputes among teens, they can also transform these disputes into something quieter, more confusing, and sometimes harder to deal with. 'Tech creates these subtle fault lines in communication,' Emily Weinstein, executive director of Harvard's Center for Digital Thriving, told me. Behaviors like leaving someone on read, half-swiping on Snapchat, or turning off location sharing are 'ambiguous signals,' Weinstein said. They could be innocent, or they could mean the sender is actually mad, an uncertainty that has teens 'worrying, wondering, second- or even third-guessing what is meant.' These ambiguities aren't unique to teens — who among us has not sent or received the dreaded 'ok' text? But today's tweens and teens have also grown up enmeshed with devices in a way their elders didn't. Their formative years have been marked by lockdowns and school closures, periods when, as podcast co-host Joanne put it, 'the only type of interactions we could have had were behind a screen.' What happens when a machine for sending ambiguous signals becomes an integral part of your social life? Why ambiguous texting hurts For answers, I turned to Scholastic's Kid Reporters, a group of 10–14-year-olds who cover 'news for kids, by kids.' The young journalists went to work in their respective schools, and came back with much the same observation the Behind the Screens co-hosts shared with me: phones definitely make it easier to ignore someone you don't want to talk to. 'Sometimes it's just easier to leave someone on read or not respond right away instead of talking face to face,' one 13-year-old told Scholastic reporter Aiden. 'I've definitely avoided talking to someone in person and just showed I was mad by muting them for a bit. It's kinda petty but it's also how a lot of people deal with stuff now.' 'In real life you can't ghost somebody,' Scholastic reporter Xander Dorsey told me in an email. 'In texting you could say 'oh, I'll be right back.' It's much more awkward to walk off in real life.' Teens can also express their displeasure with someone by taking them off their close friends list on Instagram, or — a more extreme step — unfollowing them entirely, Akshaya said. Online communication 'makes it a lot easier to be passive-aggressive,' she explained. But being on the receiving end of such passive aggression, whether it's a 'dry' text or message hanging there on the screen without a response, kids and experts agree: 'It will trigger this anxious thinking spiral where they see that they've been left on read, and you start to wonder, are they mad at me?' Weinstein told me. 'Do they hate me? Do they think I'm an idiot? Did I say the wrong thing?' When the meaning does become clear, ambiguous signals can be even more painful than a more direct confrontation, teens say. 'I got removed from a group chat and found out they were talking about me behind my back,' the same 13-year-old told Aiden. 'I felt confused and like I wasn't even worth a real explanation.' 'It hurt even more that they didn't just come talk to me,' she added. Phones are shaping how kids navigate conflict Passive-aggressive phone behavior is far from unique to kids. But because they're at a developmental stage in which they're extremely sensitive to what their peers are thinking and feeling about them, 'they're more likely to be scrutinizing these ambiguous signals,' Weinstein said. Adolescence is also a time when conflict resolution skills are still developing, Weinstein said. We all need those skills because 'life is full of conflict,' said Darja Djordjevic, a psychiatrist who works with Stanford Brainstorm, a lab focused on mental health and digital well-being. Dealing with people who disagree with us is a crucial part of growing up. Some fear that phones could disrupt that process. 'We learn how to argue and fight productively in person,' Djordjevic said. Sending ambiguous signals over text or social media could represent 'a lost opportunity for confronting things' in real life. There's a lot of concern among adults about how phones affect social skills more generally, and while I don't always share that concern, I think it's reasonable to ask whether new forms of communication will change how teens handle (or don't handle) confrontation as they mature. The older teens I spoke with allayed these concerns somewhat. Akshaya told me that when she and her friends were younger, 'we would start removing each other from our followings if there was a big falling-out, or getting dry and stuff to avoid talking to each other.' Now that they're about to graduate from high school, though, 'I don't see it as much.' Kids also pointed out that phones can sometimes actually help them resolve a conflict. Texting 'gives me time to think before responding and helps me express my thoughts more clearly,' one 12-year-old told Aiden. 'Sometimes it's less intimidating to start a difficult conversation through messages, and that can help us work out the problem later.' Teens will also often show a draft text to multiple friends before hitting send, Tanisha told me. That way, 'you're more confident that that text isn't going to be something bad or anything like that, because you have other people's approval.' (With workshopping texts, however, there is a risk that 'your voice kind of gets lost,' she noted.) And avoiding confrontation isn't always the worst thing. If, for example, a kid lives in a community or goes to a school where physical fights are common, 'the stakes of certain kinds of online conflict are very different than a teen who's in a context where all that might happen is someone's gonna be mad at them,' Weinstein said. For some teens, ambiguous signals could actually be a way to stay safe. Still, just as teenagers might need tools for responding to big, loud problems like bullying, they need help dealing with the subtle fault lines their phones create as well. It starts with listening to young people about the role tech plays in their lives, Weinstein said. Some app features that may seem benign to adults (Instagram close friends or location sharing come to mind) can feel very different for teens, Weinstein explained. 'So often, adults miss or misunderstand aspects of what teens are experiencing behind their screens.' The kids I talked to also had advice for their peers dealing with dry texting and other ambiguous phone behaviors, much of it strikingly low-tech. Scholastic reporter Evy, 12, recommends hashing things out in person whenever possible. 'Having a real conversation with them and laughing with them — that makes it so much better,' she said. What I'm reading PowerSchool, a company that makes software parents and teachers use to track students' grades, was hacked last year. Now several schools have received extortion notes threatening to release private student data. The FDA is moving to pull prescription fluoride drops and tablets off the market. HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., has repeatedly criticized the mineral, but experts say many of his claims are misleading, and dentists are worried that getting rid of fluoride will increase kids' risk of tooth decay. Amid the culture wars surrounding America's schools, politicians are no longer talking about children's actual learning, writes Dana Goldstein at the New York Times. Both my children have been demanding repeat readings of Chloe and Maude, a picture book about what to do when a) your drawings don't look realistic, b) your friend tries to reinvent herself and you're not sure you like it, or c) you're trying to fall asleep but that one crack on the ceiling looks like a mouth. From my inbox A reader recently reached out to tell me she received an email from Google notifying her that the company's Gemini AI apps would soon be available for kids, allowing them to 'create stories, songs, and poetry,' and 'get homework help.' The reader found the Google email 'off-putting and disturbing,' she said, 'as if they are saying it's inevitable that kids will be relying heavily on AI in the future, so here's a guide on how to get them started young.' Next week, I'll be talking with Vox senior tech correspondent — and User Friendly newsletter author — Adam Clark Estes about the role of AI in kids' lives. If you, like the reader above, have thoughts about how the kids you know use (or don't use) AI — or questions for me and Adam as we chat — let me know at
Indian Express
13-05-2025
- Sport
- Indian Express
Meet Tanisha Crasto, Indian badminton's hellraiser
Tanisha Crasto doesn't have the polished technique, prim tactics or pitch perfect temperament of the world's best mixed doubles shuttlers of the world – the Chinese, Koreans or Japanese. India's most improved female badminton player of the last 12 months, can be tempestuous, error-prone and heedless to hurting herself when she dives around on a non-stop cavalier mode for caution. Her critics frown when she screams on sound sanitised badminton courts, and they cluck tongues when she messes at the net – both, often. But you can't put Tanisha in a corner. She is an unapologetic hellraiser – a maverick who would seek out barrels if she was a surfer, and barnstorm if she was a pilot. 'I didn't play it safe. I went all in,' she says, describing a recent match at the Sudirman Cup against Indonesia – India's only win in the tie, alongside equally hot-headed Dhruv Kapila. 'With Shruti (Mishra) against Denmark,' she jogs back to an earlier tie, again the only win for India in women's doubles, 'my whole perspective was go in there and have fun. We discussed, whatever happens, we will enjoy playing badminton, and have a blast.' This 'blast' included Shruti pushing Tanisha inadvertently as she tried tracking back using her partner's stumbling figure to balance her turn, right when Tanisha was already tripping over her own feet. In a tense team event, with India's big names having lost all their matches, tempers could've flared. The two women, 21 and 23 respectively – burst out laughing. As frothy luck would have it, the shuttle floated long, giving India the point. 'Honesty, I don't take playing matches for India as pressure. I'm just happy to fight, so I never think of it as a burden of 'Oh, I have to get a point for India…or else..' I'm confident in my combinations. We discussed courts were slow, it would be long rallies, we just need to be in the game,' she adds, 'have fun.' Fear is a waste of emotional energy for Tanisha, not worth the brain cells either. The sheer work rate of playing both doubles – womens and mixed – is no stress either. 'I've always done that in junior team events also. We didn't have our A team, so we stepped in. I'm quite experienced,' she says after being onboarded by Reliance Foundation to their badminton fleet. It's a statement that captures the Tanisha-story: at 21, she's already been to the Olympics qualifying stompingly, and reached Top 20 of mixed doubles with two different partners. The perfect baton inheritor from Ashwini Ponappa, who played 13 straight days, two matches daily for India's 2018 CWG team gold. 'I'm very confident I can pull out two matches,' Tanisha declares. She of course doesn't win all. Mixed needs women players to move in front quickly and because she plays both (and generally plays every match like singles where she chases after every shuttle) Tanisha has had her share of obnoxious trolling when both players went for the same shutte, and looked silly and amateurish on court. But her bustling energy cannot be contained. Those mad dives where she leaps as if she's on trampolines when it's rock hard court? 'All those scars on my body are proof that I'm having fun in the fight,' she says, and reckons everyone might well be proud of her commitment. More than once, Tanisha is on the floor, defending and sending back shuttles when sitting and even prone. 'Oh, those just happen,' she giggles. Tanisha started playing doubles (and fell in love with it) in Dubai from age 5, with her father playing at the club. 'There weren't too many academies back then in Dubai, and everyone mostly played doubles. Singles was never my calling,' she says explaining why she loves doubles: 'It's high-paced, a lot of blood rush in the brain, lot of teamwork and challenges are difficult.' It is also notoriously difficult to crack into the Top 10. Mixed doubles demands a personality from its women – the fiery Jwala Gutta was India's finest. It's a direct, unrestrained confrontation with male power in the smash, and no one is under any illusion that the women of either side are not singled out and bombarded as the 'weak links'. 'Look, having a guy as partner and as opponent is hugely different. Their intensity and strength is much more than us. Initially I didn't know how to handle that pressure, I'll be honest. You stay in the present, get in the breathing, calm down, find solutions,' she adds. Her go-to is to keep breathing deep, get in the zone, and drown out noise. Against Indonesia's tall Gloria Widjaja who smashes from 7 feet at the net, Dhruv caught her on cross drives to make her bend. But Tanisha created a lot of openings after being 16-19 down at clutch. 'I calmed down and went into the zone where I could see every shuttle clearly. Dhruv controls from the back, but I'm a great front court player capitalizing at the net,' Tanisha confidently says. The two have reached Top 20 after seriously starting out only in November, making them the only bright spot besides Treesa-Gayatri in these last few months of grim singles results. The duo had a good run to the German Open semis, but at Sudirman, they were the only ones that looked in form. A lot of what Tanisha plays now and her temperament on court is directly taught by Ashwini, 13 years her senior. 'Ashwini is just so super dedicated. But she also taught me to enjoy life, go out, experience life, take breaks from deep focus and to be calm on court,' she says. Win or lose, Ashwini always had a big smile on her face – as if she was enjoying the battle. That smile can really freak out opponents, Tanisha thinks, though it's just her way to not let pressure turn debilitating. 'So I listen to music, go out, I love shopping. It eases my stress. Just stepping out, going for a drive. It's my time to regroup. Initially it was very tough to switch off from the game. But physiologically, psychologically it's very important to tune out,' she says. This going all in – completely switching out duality of battle, comes from her mother, Tulip. Working in logistics in Dubai, she told her husband to quit his job at Intel to accompany Tanisha to competitions. 'Badminton was costly, but I couldn't travel alone. My mother made the big sacrifice and took over full responsibility of running the house with long hours of job, and taking care of my sibling and the house. Never once did she say I should not pursue my dream,' Tanisha says of her mother, who was more inclined towards cricket and art & craft. The Paris Olympics was traumatic for most Indian shuttlers as they went hungry after the dining areas ran out of food in early days. 'But it was a superb experience,' Tanisha says. 'My parents came to watch me. Village was not great due to issues with food by the time our matches were done. But then the Indian team sorted that out later bringing in cooks. But those sleeping pods for India were real cool,' she recalls, always upbeat about her circumstances, however dire. When she moved to India's national camp in Hyderabad at 16, and endured many lonely days, learning to be independent, Tanisha was pursuing single minded goal from the start. 'I wanted to play for India. That's it,' she says. She began winning everything in GCC countries, Kuwait, Bahrain and simultaneously lorded the junior circuit in India. 'Winning medals in different countries gave me confidence and told me I'm capable of that level. There is a lot to learn, so much more,' she says, exuberant about the journey ahead and learning to stay calm. Tanisha Crasto is quietly taming the tempest within her as she climbs the rankings ladder. But the fun, she knows, is when everyone else knows that she can unleash the fury and tempest at will, shushing the outside noise, so she can yell her heart out and raise proper hell for opponents.
