Actress fails to qualify after official throws her off her stride during a recent competition in Ahmedabad
Hiren Kotwani (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 21, 2019)

On Thursday night, Salman Khan tweeted, “Congrats on becoming aspiring shot yet again! Now thoda medal ko target karo (sic)”, tagging his Race 3 co-star, Daisy Shah. The actress, who made her debut in the actor’s Jai Ho (2014), received her license from the National Rifle Association of India this year, and when she’s not shooting for her films, she is brushing up on her shooting skills. Daisy, who has already succeeded twice in the Aspiration Shot category, is now aspiring to score in the Renowned Shot category.

Unfortunately, her dream to qualify for the Nationals and win a medal will have to wait till next year. “Given my practice, I’d hoped to score 575 to 580 points but a few minutes before the qualifying competition, I lost my focus,” admits the actress who took part in the Malvankar 50-meters Small Bore (.22 cartridge) competition in Ahmedabad recently. “One has to score 555 points out of 600 to qualify for the Nationals, which I missed out, though I bettered my score—from 497 to 531.”

What threw her off? “When you are shooting, you have to keep track of the target card. While some use a scope, I practised with a camera. A couple of minutes before the competition, the officer on duty told me I couldn’t use the camera. When asked why I wasn’t informed earlier, he shot back saying he wasn’t around then, but now, I’d have to follow rules. According to the rules, you’re not supposed to use a communication device. I got a lady official to confirm the camera didn’t breach the rules, but he was unreasonable and stuck to his guns,” she sighs, deteremined to put it behind her. “I can’t let such things affect my concentration. I have to practice more and there’s no excuse for losing focus of your goal.”