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A Tryst With Kushti – Indian Mud Wrestling

Wrestling is a quintessentially “Indian” Sport. Having a history as old as the 5th century BC, It has been explicitly detailed in the MallaPurana. Siddhartha Gautama Buddha was known to be an Expert Wrestler, Wrestling is also mentioned in the Mahabharata as the wrestling match between Bhima and Jarasandha as well as the Ramayana when Sugreev’s Brother King Bali defeated Ravana in a MallaYudha.
Pehelwani today is an amalgam of MallaYudha and Varjish-e-Pehelwani – a Persian form of wrestling, bought into India by the Muslims.

Pehelwani is essentially a Rural sport. Today the sport is in dire straits, with the popularity of other sports like cricket, traditional sports have fallen into neglect.
Lack of interest from the Government, red tape and no funds have increased this problem extremely.
Pehelwans, mostly live a life of austerity. Living in the akharas, maintaining a strict training and exercise regimen . Abstaining from tamasic foods and surroundings. It is an extreme form of Bhramcharya.
The soil on with the wrestlers Fight is mixed with Mustard Oil, turmeric, ghee and Milk. And a small pooja is done everyday before starting the training or a Dangal competition. The wrestlers apply the same soil on their bodies before the fight. The Soil represents Bharat Mata- Mother India.
The sport is mostly popular in the states of Delhi, Haryana, Varanasi and the center of Popularity being Kolhapur and central Maharashtra.

The issue that the sport faces is a outcome of the alienation of the government. Many wrestlers, who are under-educated and haven’t been exposed to competitions or any way to further their skill, usually end up working as henchmen for local politicians- especially in north india, or in small time jobs with collection or recovery agents, which have a minor criminal streak to them.

I traveled across India over the span of 3 years to meet and document this ancient sport, met quite a few interesting people.