After India’s silver show in the 2016 Rio Olympics, more people are watching pro-wrestling on TV. The sport has been picking up fast in Haryana, the land where wrestling is no stranger. Indian-style wrestling is known as Dangal in this northern state where wrestlers from akharas in rural areas indulge in mitti kushti (mud wrestling). It is from here that these wrestlers traverse the long and hard journey to national and international levels.
At the Mehar Singh Akhara in the narrow bylanes of Rohtak, 26-year-old Satinder Malik—who has been wrestling for nine years—says, “The sport is in the blood of every youth in the state. Every father wants his son to be a wrestler.’’
The scene at this akhara is a mix of the typical traditional kushti and some modern influences, from full contact sparring sessions known as jor to polishing their techniques or daav in the mud pit and training on the modern mat.
Clad only in the traditional red langot (loin cloth) of a wrestler, Satinder comes from Mokhra village in Rohtak, which boasts of 50 wrestlers. He has won the Junior Asian Championship in the 120-kg category and silver in 2012. He is an eight-time winner of Bharat Kesri (desi wrestling). “I wake up at 4am. My class starts at 5am. I eat just a banana in the morning. After the session ends around 8.30am, we eat vegetables, milk, ghee, roti, dal and almonds,” he says. His morning schedule includes a 10-km run, physical training and technique practice. There is a wrestling session from 3 pm to 8 pm, and then off for the day.
Pradeep Khatri is 24 years old, comes from Raipur village in Sonepat, and like Satinder, is a Junior Warrant Officer in the Indian Air Force. He is an Asian Games bronze medallist in 2013 and won a gold in the 2016 South Asian Games in Guwahati. “I started wrestling in 2008 as all my uncles were wrestlers,” he says.
There are 200 budding wrestlers at Mehar Singh Akhara, where three boys share a room. The guru-chela system is still followed here. When senior coach Ranbir Singh Dakha walks in, the boys touch his feet in obeisance. Dakha has given 45 of his 55 years to the sport and has produced many national and 19 international wrestlers at Bahadurgarh and Gurukul akharas. At Mehar Singh Akhara, 40 wrestlers coached by him have made it to the international mat and six to the pro-wrestling league.
“I have been coaching for 28 years. The pace, training and coaching have changed a lot and we have more facilities now,” he says.
Former wrestler Ved Pal Mor is in the akhara to show his grandson and nephew, both boxers, the ins and outs of wrestling. “The sun could forget to shine but my day started at 4am with a 10-km run in the fields followed by a half-hour exercise. The morning session ended with a wrestling bout in the mud,’’ recalls the 73-year-old 1968 wrestling gold medallist at Open India. He also won the All India Inter University championships from 1970-74 and was crowned Bharat Kumar in 1970 and was Haryana Kumar from 1970 till 1974. “Now I pratice yoga and walk 4 km everyday.”
Juniors in the akhara do seva (service) of their seniors, cook meals and carry out daily chores as a tradition. Only three rooms have TV sets, on which they are allowed to watch pro-wrestling. Raj Pal started wrestling eight years ago and won the Bharat Kesri in 2009. “I started wrestling as I used to walk 6 km every day carrying milk for my elder brother, who is a wrestler,” says the 24-year-old, 6.8 feet tall Pal.