What is Darma Tennis Academy?

Darma Tennis Academy is a program my brother and I have created to reach out to children in Tamil Nadu, India in a new and creative way. Instead of just teaching and volunteering, we opted to teach tennis and share our passion for the sport.

Darma Tennis Academy is the extracurricular pathway of MahaDarshan's leadership program which is working on developing the inner leader within every child.

Darma Tennis Academy is supported by Dr.Shakthi Inc, a not for profit organization started by my mother and me. The following posts are a documentation of our project and some are actually written in Tamil, our mother tongue. Enjoy!

வாங்க விளையாடலாம்!

This is a welcome message in Tamil for our participants!

Good Hearted Donations Go a Long Way!

From New year 2010 and Darma Tennis academy videos

We are very thankful to all the donors. We are especially thankful to Mrs. Eliopoulos who was once a professional tennis player. She has donated a a lot of tennis racquets from her own personal collection. We hope to bring happiness and joy to all the children who will be part of our 2nd Summer Tennis Camp in India this year.

Videos from the tennis camp, June 2009

Thanks to all the friends who donated their tennis racquets! The children (along with Manu and me) had a "ball". It was very nice of the members in the club to give us a helping hand. We hope the interest we kindled in this children will grow and glow!

Please visit the link below to see the children in action!

http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=B413242CBEEF0D8D

Darma Tennis Clinic - June 2009 in Vellore, India

Darma Tennis Academy's first tennis clinic was conducted in Vellore, India. Over the last several months, basic education on playing tennis was made available through video and people. Manu and I demonstrated the basics of tennis (i.e. forehand, backhand, volley, grip, etc.) and explained in the local language, Tamil. Children who showed interest in going further were selected for the tennis camp, and what we thought would be about 8 students, turned into 20! These children were provided with free transportation to the tennis court, property of the local officer's club (one of the 2 courts for the entire town). The children had a great time. They ran around picking up tennis balls for me while other children were playing and as only half of them had canvas shoes (the appropriate footwear), they kindly let their friends borrow them for half the time while they sat out! We finished up with a game called "Apples and Oranges" to hone in on their hand-eye coordination skills. This exercise demonstrated that socioeconomic status as a barrier can always be overcome if you're willing to help and give it a chance. Given an opportunity any child will shine. These children all went back home and were asking for their own tennis racquet!

Tennis program in Vellore, South India

We have started the process of setting up some basic tennis training. We will follow up with an actual tennis camp when my brother and I go to India this summer

Posture... Forehand

 

You can see Manu bending his knees, with his chest turned to the right at 90 degrees, his right hand is behind his body, facing the fence aligned with his body, ready to hit his forehand shot.

Playing Tennis - Video Demonstration

ஓடி விளையாடு - கேளுங்கோ பாருங்கோ ஆடுங்கோ

Darma Tennis Academy Training Videos

விளையாடும்போது தண்ணீர் குடிக்கணும்

Explaning the importance of hydrating themselves while playing. Having been in India several times, I know how ill prepared we can be sometimes when we are thirsty!

உங்களுடைய நண்பர்கள் நாங்கள்!

I decided that apart from stimulating the youngsters academically, I should also get them involved in a sport which has helped me shape my skills and thought process significantly. Being a tennis player, I know the benefits of this sport gives both physically and mentally!
Having a younger brother who is just as interested as me (if not more!) is a definite advantage.
Our attempt to go around to collect used tennis racquets was pretty successful and I am thankful to all those who were kind enough to donate. I then contacted our family friend Dr. Bharani (Barani aunty) to find a local coach who will work along with me in my efforts.
While the coach will work with the children on a regular basis, we will also be sending some training videos that we create and maintaing phone contact.
I cannot wait until this summer when I can interact with all the children and hold a tennis clinic!