Arguably the face of India’s shooting contingent for a few years, Manu Bhaker sees her popularity soar multi-folds. Bhaker already has two medals in her account, having clinched bronze twice – in 10m air pistol individual and mixed team events – and is on the cusp of a third in 25m air pistol event. Courtesy of her twin medals so far, a report has revealed that the pistol shooter has been approached by 40-odd brands for endorsements. While Manu’s focus is still on the Paris Olympic Games, her agency has already sealed a couple of deals, worth crores.

Manu used to charge a fee of INR 20-25 lakh for each endorsement but now the charges have reportedly gone up 6-7 times. One deal in the range of INR 1.5 crore has reportedly been closed already.

“We have got about 40-odd inquiries in just the last 2-3 days. We are focusing right now on the long-term association deals, and we have closed a couple of endorsements,” said Neerav Tomar, CEO and MD of IOS Sports & Entertainment, the company that manages Manu, to Times of India.

“Her brand value, of course, has jumped five to six folds. So anything we were doing before was in the vicinity of Rs 20-25 lakhs, now it has gone to the region of about Rs 1.5 crore for one deal of endorsements. This is a one-year kind of engagement for a brand category with exclusivity.”

While long-term endorsements remain the primary focus for Manu’s team, a few short-term endorsements are also in line.

“There are also a lot of digital-engagement queries of shorter term — 1 month, 3 months. But we are focusing on the long-term deals,” he added.

“At the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games, we get a lot of medals in shooting. But then it just fizzles out. In the Olympics, you stand out, and with two medals you just completely outshine,” he added.

From the Tokyo Olympics despair, Manu Bhaker seems to be en route to becoming a national sporting brand just like Neeraj Chopra whose gold medal in the last Olympic Games made him an icon.

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