Aryan Brahmin
© Philip M Reny
Handball

Meet Aryan Brahmin, on whose shoulders rest India’s handball hopes

The 19-year-old from Bhubaneswar describes his rollercoaster journey in the sport of handball since he became a professional athlete in 2015.
Written by Omkar Dhareshwar
8 min readPublished on
Aryan Brahmin never imagined he would be one of India’s biggest handball hopefuls as a teenager.
Growing up in Bhubaneswar, he always dreamt of a life in the more popular sport of football.
“I was a hardcore football fan and Lionel Messi has always been my role model. I wanted to become a professional footballer and follow Messi’s footsteps,” says Aryan.
While he knew it would be a challenge to make it as a footballer, Aryan cultivated another sports dream from a young age.
“In 2012 (when I was just nine years old), I watched a handball match for the first time during the broadcast of the 2012 London Olympics,” says Aryan.
Aryan Brahmin

Aryan Brahmin

© Philip M Reny

The fast-paced game was super exciting for Aryan and he followed the sport diligently from then on. But it was only 2015 when he committed himself to handball wholeheartedly.
At that point, Aryan had even represented Odisha in age-group national football tournaments, but watching a state-level handball tournament in his hometown that year – where he saw his first handball match in person – helped convince him of his vocation.
“I loved the whole experience of the handball tournament. The way the audience was cheering for their favorite players, it made me want to become an amazing handball player myself so that I could also experience that adulation,” says Aryan.
And so his journey began.

The early days

Aryan had always been destined for a life in sports.
His father had been a professional long-distance runner who also played basketball and handball at the national level. Aryan had always wanted to follow in his footsteps and was now proud that his father was his first handball coach.
But his father was a thorough professional. He made it clear that if Aryan wanted to be a sportsperson, he had to take it very seriously. Gone were the laidback days of watching cartoons while sprawled on the couch. Aryan was now living the life of a professional athlete.
“I started isolating myself from things that were distracting me. I barely saw my friends anymore. Even now, I don’t get time to speak to my friends; I just meet them once a year to catch-up. I also stopped eating unhealthy food, reduced my social media use, and started giving priority to sleeping well so I could recover,” says Aryan of his early sacrifices.
Aryan Brahmin

Aryan Brahmin

© Philip M Reny

One year into training with dad and the results were already apparent. Aryan was selected for the Bhubaneswar youth handball team in 2016, and later the same year got called up for the state team.
The father-son duo realized that if Aryan had to reach the next level of his potential, he would have to leave the nest and train with the best handball players in the country.

Stepping up to the big leagues

Aryan began traveling to Delhi to live in the national centres where India’s best handball players trained regularly.
Leaving behind home comforts is always daunting, and so was the case for Aryan as well.
His regular railway trips from Bhubaneswar to Delhi meant that he was constantly travelling, so he was not able to rest between training sessions. More so, he wasn’t always guaranteed a seat, meaning he was making the overnight trips by sleeping on the floor of the train compartments.
But these sacrifices also yielded rewards. At age 15, Aryan was already a member of the India youth handball team. And the quality of his game was constantly improving.
Aryan Brahmin

Aryan Brahmin

© Philip M Reny

While representing the under-19 Odisha team at the junior national meet in Hisar, Haryana, when he was spotted by the senior national team scouts. Aryan was unaware that scouts were present at the tournament and went about his game as usual.
When he returned home, he was pleasantly surprised to have received a letter on behalf of the India men’s handball team.
”I had received a letter inviting me to be part of a 30-person training camp that would lead to selections for the India men’s handball team,” Aryan exclaims.
And soon after, Aryan put on the India men’s handball jersey for the first time.
Aryan Brahmin

Aryan Brahmin

© Philip M Reny

Game-changer and game-maker

Aryan is proud of the efforts he has put into nurturing his talent so far.
“I love everything about the sport; the change of direction, the reflexes and movements. To play handball professionally, you need to have power, speed, stamina… everything.
“I am fast. This helps me change direction quickly, deliver 1v1 feints, and one-touch sudden passes. I have strong jumps, which gives me sufficient airtime to make the perfect pass,” Aryan says.
As a scrawny teenager, Aryan knew he would have to build muscle mass and explosive power if he wanted to get better at the game. Soon after implementing strength training, Aryan was able to jump up to hold onto a basketball hoop 10-feet above the ground. This was possible by regimented fitness routines.
Aryan Brahmin

Aryan Brahmin

© Philip M Reny

On Mondays and Fridays, Aryan practices three hours of dynamic mobility, activation and post-action potentiation to increase muscle performance with a special emphasis on jump specific training. On Wednesdays he focusses on core strength, stability and mobility. On Tuesdays and Thursdays he works on his upper body strength after match training. The first half of Sunday is for high endurance work on loose sand while evenings are for active recovery in which he plays any sport apart from handball.
This regimen has helped him build his body to excel at the sport.
According to Aryan, his on-court strengths allow him to play left wing, left back and centre. Of these, his preference is to play centre, which is much like the midfielder position in football.
“I love feeding the ball, which is one of the most important things in the game. I play as the game-maker, who supplies the ball forward,” he says.
Aryan Brahmin

Aryan Brahmin

© Philip M Reny

Living his dream

When the Reliance Foundation High Performance Centre opened its doors in Bhubaneswar in 2019. Aryan was able to train at an excellent facility in his hometown under the guidance of coach Debi Prasad Kar.
With the facilities within reach, Aryan scaled to new levels in 2019, marking his most successful year in the sport.
He was part of the India men’s handball team that won silver at the 2019 South Asian Independence Cup Handball Championship held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. He was also part of the squad that played at the 2019 Lloret Cup International Handball Tournament in Spain, where he was declared as the best player on his team.
When he returned home, he was invited to meet the Governor of Odisha at his residence, an honour reserved for a select few.
Furthermore, representing India in international handball tournaments helped Aryan achieve one of his lifelong wishes – to meet his idol Lionel Messi.
While in Spain for the Lloret Cup, Aryan attended the Champions League quarterfinal second leg between Barcelona and Manchester United at Camp Nou. Not only did he get to see Messi score two goals to help Barcelona win, he also got to meet the footballer and get his autograph.
“Since I was very young, Messi’s story and his dedication have inspired me a great deal! Meeting him definitely was one of the highlights of my life,” Aryan says.
Aryan Brahmin

Aryan Brahmin

© Philip M Reny

Stumbling blocks

Unfortunately, while Aryan worked hard at his craft, there were doubters of his talent.
While attending a camp for the 2023 Special Olympics (unified sports category where people with and without intellectual disabilities play on the same team) in Haryana in October 2022, Aryan was accused of using performance enhancing drugs. Aryan says there was absolutely no truth to these claims because he never tested positive for any drugs or enhancements of any kind.
“It was wrong for them to write me off without any test,” says Aryan.
“I was hugely disappointed, but I also felt good that I managed to build myself and my game up to such a point where people couldn’t believe that I was doing it without illegal enhancements,” he says.
Unfortunately, these false accusations dented Aryan’s confidence and he decided to opt out of selection trials for the 2023 Asian Games.
Aryan Brahmin

Aryan Brahmin

© Philip M Reny

On the upward march

As he grows older, Aryan has been learning more about what he needs to do outside the court to succeed at his sport.
He has been a consistent member of the India handball team, representing the country at the 2022 Asian Men's Youth Handball Championship in Bahrain, 2022 Asian Youth Beach Handball Championship in Iran and 2022 Partille Cup – World of Handball Championship in Sweden.
And he has been setting his sights on larger targets.
While the Premier Handball League made its debut in India in 2023, Aryan was unable to be part of the inaugural season. But he is certain he will excel if he is selected for the league next year.
Recharging himself for some new battles, Aryan is adamant to be part of the India men’s handball team at the 2027 Asian Games, come what may.