Coffee farms to snow-clad slopes: Meet TN Bhavani, India's first cross-country skiing medallist

In 2013, somewhere in Kodagu, a teenager sat transfixed in front of a TV screen. It wasn’t just Ranbir Kapoor’s boyish charm or Deepika Padukone’s wanderlust eyes in Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani that caught her eye.

It was something else entirely: snow, mountains, adventure. That was the moment TN Bhavani discovered mountaineering.

Ten years later, she was half-a-world away in Corralco, Chile, pushing her body through the freezing wind, counting strides against the backdrop of the Andes.

When she crossed the finish line in the women’s 5km interval start free race at the FIS South America Cup, there was no cinematic swell of music.

Just a tired exhale.

Later, she’d learn she’d done something no Indian woman had before: win a medal in a FIS accredited cross-country skiing event.

“I wasn’t even thinking about medals,” she says with a laugh in an exclusive conversation with The Bridge.

“All I wanted was to stay as close as possible to the Mexican and Argentine girls, because they’re Olympians. The whole race I was telling myself: don’t let the gap grow, just push, just hang on.”

Bhavani’s bronze wasn’t just the product of that day. It was the result of a journey that began with mountaineering camps through the NCC, alpine skiing experiments, and eventually a chance encounter with a principal in Kashmir who told her to “forget alpine, you’ll do cross-country now.”

Three weeks later, she was competing at nationals, still learning how to stay upright on those narrow skis.

Parents who had never seen snow

Bhavani grew up on a coffee farm in Kodagu, her father tending to it, her mother managing the home.

“They’ve never even seen snow in their lives,” she says. “And yet, they’ve been my biggest supporters.”

When she told them she wanted to quit her job, she had been working as a mountaineering and ski instructor in Kashmir, to chase skiing full-time, their only question was: Does it make you happy?

“I said, the moment I put on my skis, I forget everything else. I’m happiest then,” Bhavani recalls.

“My dad told me, if this is what makes you happy, then do it. We’re not rich, but whatever we have is for you. If we can’t support you financially, our blessings and belief will always be with you.”

That belief has carried her through every challenge.

Once, stranded outside a domestic terminal in Iceland at minus 17°C, Bhavani called home in tears, telling her mother she was done.

“I said, I can’t survive this cold, please take me home. But that moment, like many others, only made me stronger," she recalled.

The rhythm of a year

Cross-country skiing is often described as the most physically brutal of Olympic sports. For Bhavani, it’s also an exercise in logistics. Snow, after all, is seasonal.

India, with its unpredictable snowfall, offers little consistency for a sport like cross-country skiing.

“It’s not just India, snow is disappearing everywhere,” Bhavani explains.

“But in Europe, they make artificial snow; they preserve last year’s snow. We don’t have that here. If there’s no snow, we just can’t train.”

When she arrived in Chile this season, the slopes were bare. She spent her first days running uphill, cycling, hiking, anything but skiing.

“It was frustrating,” she admits. “I’d come all this way, and there was no snow. But once the snow came, I told myself: you can’t waste a single day. Olympic qualification is in a few months.”

“In India, December to March is winter, so I try to be in the snow in Kashmir or Europe,” she explains.

“In summer, like this year, I was in Mumbai. That’s when we focus on strength training, cycling, running, and even kayaking. We use roller skis, basically skiing on wheels, to mimic technique. And then if I can, I head to South America or New Zealand in August-September, to get more snow time. It’s a cycle of chasing winter across the world.”

That cycle is what brought her to Chile this September, and to the medal that made history.

Until recently, every decision carried the weight of finances. Equipment, travel, and accommodation — skiing is a sport that demands money.

“It was always about how I would manage this season?” Bhavani says. “It was exhausting.”

Her partnership with Reliance Foundation changed that. “For the first time, I have a sports psychologist, a nutritionist, and a strength coach. I spent three months in Ulwe this summer, which is what has given me these results. Before, I thought I could manage alone. Now, with a team, my performance has just jumped.”

And then there’s Shiva Keshavan, six-time Olympian and her mentor.

“Whenever I break down, he’s the one I call. He always reminds me, your qualification won’t just be your win. It will be a win for all of Indian winter sports. A girl from the South qualifying will change how people see what’s possible.”

The bigger picture

Bhavani has already been the “first” many times over, first South Indian to represent India at the Nordic World Championships, first Indian woman to medal in a FIS cross-country event.

But her eyes are fixed on something bigger: the 2026 Winter Olympics.

She has three World Cups coming up, her make-or-break chance at qualification. “This is it,” she says. “Three races to prove I belong.”

For her, though, belonging has never been about medals alone.

Back in 2021, after a gold at the Khelo India Games, she spoke at a school on Women’s Day.

“Little girls came up to me saying, We love your story, we want to try something bold too. That day, I knew, if I just did a normal job, I’d live my life. But as an athlete, maybe I can change others’ lives.”

And so here she is: a Kodagu girl inspired by a Bollywood movie, now grinding on roller skis in Mumbai summers, racing in minus 17° winters, dreaming of Olympic snow.