How DK Sen, Lakshya’s father and renowned coach, taught shuttlers from the hill drict Almora to move mountains

DK Sen is a much sought after person at the badminton courts in Parade Ground, Dehradun. To the outside world, he is known as the father and first coach of star shuttler Lakshya Sen. But in Uttarakhand, his image is of a path-finder. He had a hand in setting up the first proper badminton court in the hill drict of Almora in the early 1990s. This was even before the state was carved out of Uttar Pradesh. His sons Lakshya and Chirag first played on that court before moving to the Prakash Padukone Badminton Academy in Bengaluru.Sen and his wife moved out of Almora and shifted to the Garden City in 2016 to keep tabs on their children. They opted for voluntary retirement. The National Games is a homecoming for him. It’s been a while since he spent more than 10 days at a stretch in his home state, Sen said. He’s catching up with local coaches, former players and also old friends and acquaintances.
During matches, Sen is in the coach’s corner guiding Uttarakhand players. Sixteen-year-old Suryaksh Rawat featured in the men’s singles final. Though Rawat, a retriever like Lakshya, lost 21-17, 21-17 to Sathish Karunakaran on Tuesday, he’s already caught the attention of PV Sindhu. India’s greatest badminton player effusively praised Rawat’s talent in a post on X a day earlier.
Story continues below this ad

“Suryaksh’s defence will be better if he improves his footwork. If he can convert defence into attack with variations it will benefit his game,” Sen said.
The teenager is one of Uttarakhand’s big hopes and like the Sen brothers, he too made the journey to Bengaluru.
Sen reels off names of promising players from the state, and he hopes Lakshya and his older brother Chirag have done enough to inspire the next generation to dream big. Like he was his father Chandra Lal Sen, a multi-talented officer in the agricultural department and a badminton addict.
The senior-most Sen was the first to introduce Almora to badminton.Chandra Lal carried the poles on his shoulder and the net to set up an outdoor badminton court. “He used to clean the court, call people to play and taught them. My father was my coach and he asked me to do an NIS course (in coaching),” Sen recalled.Story continues below this ad
He took his father’s legacy forward helping set up the first wooden badminton court in Almora. At first, they played in a hall that doubled as a class room at the Soban Singh Jeena University. “We had to remove almost 100 chairs and then put them back after we played because students used the space to study,” Sen said.
Finding space for a badminton court was challenging in the hilly region. A hall used as a godown was identified as a possible venue.
The first near-standard court in Almora, located at the HNB Sports Stadium in Almora, was thrown open in 1993. “Later, a politician got funds and we got a proper covering for the court,” Sen said.Later on, the badminton tragic spotted an opportunity to add one more court. Plans for a helipad and tennis courts were stuck because of land issues, yet Sen convinced the authorities to use part of the funds for a second court. These are the very courts on which he coached his sons.
Sen’s father was a disciplinarian but not known to lose his cool. “Once a senior officer shouted at my father without realising that the file he wanted had been ready for days. My father didn’t say a word back. He quietly went to his table, picked up the file and gave it to the officer. An apology and a cash award followed. To work hard and be disciplined, that is what my father taught me and I have tried to inculcate these traits in my sons. Of course, I have passed on the love for badminton too.” Story continues below this ad
Despite the entire family moving to Bengaluru, they stay in touch with their roots. Originally from Someshwar, 45 kilometres from Almora, both Lakshya and Chirag, have made visits to their ancestral village Rasyara and performed puja.
Though Lakshya pulled out of the National Games because of an ankle injury, the state’s men and women teams won silver medals at the games with Chirag representing the family on the podium. Sen beamed with pride as the winners posed for multiple photos.
“I miss Almora a lot. It is our karmasthal.” There’s a tinge of regret when he’s asked about the current talent pool from Almora. “It has shrunk. You need a passionate coach to bring the best out of the kids. But there are good signs because at the National Games, the junior players from the state have stepped up and done really well.”