Manzoor Hussain (1922–1985), also known as Bholu Pahalwan, was a Pakistani wrestler and held the world heavyweight title.

Biography

Bholu came from a

Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to: * People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir * Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley * Kashmiri language, the language of the Kashmiris ethnic group People with the nam ...

family of renowned wrestlers from

Amritsar Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...

and after the

independence Independence is a condition of a nation, country, or state, in which residents and population, or some portion thereof, exercise self-government, and usually sovereignty, over its territory. The opposite of independence is the status of ...

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

in 1947, moved to

Lahore Lahore ( ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, second-largest city in Pakistan, after Karachi, and ...

, Pakistan. He lived in Amritsar until he was nine. Then during one of his school holidays, Bholu moved to

Patiala Patiala () is a city in southeastern Punjab, India, Punjab, northwestern India. It is the fourth largest city in the state and is the administrative capital of Patiala district. Patiala is located around the ''Qila Mubarak, Patiala, Qila Mubar ...

to visit his father, who was also a wrestler. He was Gama Pehelwan's nephew. He died on 6 March 1985 in Pakistan. His son Nasir Bholu is also a wrestler.

Career

1930s

Bholu started his wrestling career in

Radhanpur Radhanpur is a village and a gram panchayat in Patan district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Gujarat. Origin of name According to the tradition, this village is named after Radhan Khan, a descendant of Fateh Khan Baloch. ...

under the guidance of

Hamida Pahalwan Hamida Pahalwan (7 April 1907 – 12 April 1984) was a Pakistani wrestler. He was the former Rustam-i-Hind and one of the elite champions of the British Raj. Early life Hamida Pahalwan was born during the British Raj in 1907. He started hi ...

Rehmaniwala, real name Abdul Hamid Al Maroof Rehmani, who was an official wrestler of that state. In 1935, at age 13, Bholu made his first appearance in a wrestling contest at Lahore. He competed with Ahmad Baksh to a draw for a duration of twelve minutes. On 27 March 1939, Bholu wrestled Ahmad Baksh for the second time in Lahore. From 1935 till 1940, Bholu succeeded against some of the most competent Indian Pahalwans like Mangal Singh, Kharak Singh, Bora Singh, Bulhar Pahalwan and Aleem Pahalwan of Baroda. During 1940, Bholu competed in the war fund wrestling competitions staged by the government in every part of the subcontinent to boost war funds. Bholu Pahalwan defeated a number of wrestlers, including a local champion, Ghousia Pahalwan, twice in Lahore and for the third time in

Bahawalnagar Bahawalnagar ( Punjabi, ), is the capital city of Bahawalnagar District in the Punjab province of Pakistan. The city of Bahawalnagar is the headquarter of the district and tehsil as well.

1940s

In 1944, Bholu defeated Puran Singh Amritsari in Ajain in a recorded time of 6 minutes. Later the same year, he defeated another wrestler with a similar name, Puran Singh Patialawala, in

Ludhiana Ludhiana () is the most populous Cities in India, city in the Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab.164.100.161.224 http://164.100.161.224 › filesPDF Ludhiana State: Punjab Business & Industrial Centre, Tier 2 1 ... The city has an estima ...

in 3 minutes. In 1945, Bholu beat a Sikh wrestler known as Darbar Singh in

Kasur Kasur (Punjabi language, Punjabi / ; ; also Romanization, romanized as Qasūr; from pluralized Arabic word ''Qasr'' meaning "palaces" or "forts") is a city to the south of Lahore, in the Pakistani province of Punjab, Pakistan, Punjab. The city s ...

in the shortest duration of one minute. During the early days after the independence of Pakistan in 1947, Bholu fought Gujranwalia at the Minto Park in Lahore and won the match but later there was a rematch in Karachi. In April 1949, Bholu Pahalwan won the Rustam-i-Pakistan title by beating Younus Gujranwalia Pahalwan for the Pakistani wrestling championship title in a recorded time of 8 minutes. The

Governor General of Pakistan The governor-general of Pakistan () was the representative of the Pakistani monarch in the Dominion of Pakistan, established by the Indian Independence Act 1947. The office of governor-general was abolished when Pakistan became an Islamic repu ...

Khawaja Nazimuddin Sir Khawaja Nazimuddin (19 July 1894 – 22 October 1964), also spelled Khwaja Nazimuddin, was a Pakistani politician and statesman who served as the second Governor-General of Pakistan from 1948 to 1951, and later as the second Prime Minister ...

, was the chief guest at this wrestling event, the most significant event in Pakistan's wrestling history. Bholu Pahalwan was declared the first legitimate Wrestling Champion of Pakistan.

1950s

Bholu seldom wrestled within the country after these matches. He competed with foreign wrestlers who were active in India during the early 1950s. In

Jalandhar Jalandhar () is a city in the state of Punjab, India, Punjab in India. With a considerable population, it ranks as the List of cities in Punjab and Chandigarh by population, third most-populous city in the state and is the largest city in the ...

and

Bombay Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial centre, financial capital and the list of cities i ...

, Bholu Pahalwan dominated some of the finest men in wrestling Including Emil Koroshenko, George Pencheff, Goldstein, George Zbisko, Zybisko-2 and Harbans Singh. Bholu had two main

akhara Akhara or Akhada (Hindi: अखाड़ा, romanised: ''Akhāṛā'') is an Indian word for a place of practice with facilities for boarding, lodging and training, both in the context of Indian martial artists or a ''sampradaya'' monastery fo ...

s, or wrestling dojos, within the country. The ''Bilal Gunj Akhara'' was located in Lahore. In 1948, Bholu formed another akhara known as ''Dar-ul-Sehat'' at Pakistan Chowk in Karachi. The Dar-ul-Sehat, also known as Bholu-ka-Akhara, trained in Pakistani-style wrestling under the supervision of professional wrestlers. It also provided weight training and bodybuilding facilities to the members. Bholu gave special attention to this institution. He personally trained the members that included 60 to 70 wrestlers.

1960s

Awards and recognition

Bholu received the 1962

Pride of Performance The Pride of Performance (), officially known as the Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sp ...

Award by the

Government of Pakistan The Government of Pakistan () (abbreviated as GoP), constitutionally known as the Federal Government, commonly known as the Centre, is the national authority of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, a federal republic located in South Asia, con ...

. He was granted 20 kanals of land by President

Ayub Khan Mohammad Ayub Khan (14 May 1907 – 19 April 1974) was a Pakistani military dictator who served as the second president of Pakistan from 1958 until his resignation on 1969. He was the first native commander-in-chief of the Pakistan Army, se ...

in honour of services rendered to the sport of wrestling in Pakistan. Bholu performed

hajj Hajj (; ; also spelled Hadj, Haj or Haji) is an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, the holiest city for Muslims. Hajj is a mandatory religious duty for capable Muslims that must be carried out at least once in their lifetim ...

in 1963. In 1964, the Pakistan Wrestling Association declared him Rustam-e-Zaman, The Pakistani World Champion. They imposed a condition on him that Bholu should wrestle abroad and must win a world title in order to sustain his Pakistani World Title of Rustam-e-Zaman. Since most wrestlers were reluctant to fight him. In 1967, Bholu offered a sum of 5000 British pounds through promoter

Orig Williams Orig Williams (20 March 1931 – 12 November 2009) was a Welsh professional wrestler and wrestling promoter. Williams spent his wrestling career in the persona of a villainous heel under the ring name "El Bandito", and after retiring as a figh ...

of the United Kingdom to anyone who could beat him. In May 1967, Bholu Pahalwan competed in a world championship event sponsored by Eastern Promotions Limited in UK and defeated the Anglo-French heavyweight champion, Henry Perry, for the World Heavyweight Title in Empire Pool, Wembley Stadium, London, England.The fading glory of kushti in Pakistan
Dawn (newspaper), Published 23 January 2013, Retrieved 12 July 2020 After winning the world championship abroad, his status as ''Rustam-e-Zaman'', the Pakistani World Champion, was officially confirmed in his own country in September 1967 by the Pakistan Wrestling Association. The ceremony was held in Karachi and was presided over by the home minister, Kazi Fazlullah.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pahalwan, Bholu 1922 births 1985 deaths 20th-century male professional wrestlers Bholu Pakistani people of Kashmiri descent Recipients of the Pride of Performance Sportspeople from Amritsar Sportspeople from Lahore