Pehlwani, also known as Kushti, is a form of

wrestling Wrestling is a martial art, combat sport, and form of entertainment that involves grappling with an opponent and striving to obtain a position of advantage through different throws or techniques, within a given ruleset. Wrestling involves di ...

contested in the

Indian subcontinent The Indian subcontinent is a physiographic region of Asia below the Himalayas which projects into the Indian Ocean between the Bay of Bengal to the east and the Arabian Sea to the west. It is now divided between Bangladesh, India, and Pakista ...

. It was developed in the

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an Early modern period, early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to ...

by combining Persian Koshti pahlevani with influences from native Indian

Malla-yuddha Malla-yuddha (Sanskrit: मल्लयुद्ध, ) is the traditional form of combat-wrestling originating in the Indian subcontinent. It is closely related to Southeast Asian wrestling styles such as naban and is one of the two ancestors o ...

. The words ''pehlwani'' and ''kushti'' derive from the

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

terms ''pahlavani'' (heroic) and ''koshti'' (wrestling, lit. killing) respectively, meaning Heroic wrestling. A practitioner of this sport is referred to as a ''pehlwan'' (Persian word for ''hero'') while teachers are known as

ustad Ustad, ustadh, ustaz or ustadz (abbreviated as Ust., Ut. or Ud.; from Persian language, Persian ''ustād'') is an honorific title used in West Asia, North Africa, Central Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia. It is used in various languages, incl ...

(Persian word for ''teacher'' or ''master''). One of the most famous practitioners of Pehlwani was

The Great Gama Ghulam Mohammad Baksh Butt (22 May 1878 – 23 May 1960), commonly known by the title Rustam-e-Hind and by the ring name The Great Gama, was a Kashmiri Muslim, pehlwani wrestler and strongman in British India and later, Pakistan. In the ea ...

(Ghulam Mohammad Baksh Butt), who is considered one of the greatest wrestlers of all time.

Kodi Rammurthy Naidu Kodi Rammurthy Naidu (also known as Rama Murti Naidu and Prof. Rammurty) was an Indian strongman, bodybuilder, and wrestler, celebrated for his exceptional strength and contributions to India's physical culture history. He was renowned for hi ...

was another example. Brahmdev Mishra is another example of an Indian wrestler who was known for his technique and physique not only in India but all over the world. Pehlwani is one of the sports that influenced

catch wrestling Catch wrestling (also known as catch-as-catch-can) is an English wrestling style where wrestlers aim to win by Pin (sport wrestling), pinning or Submission (combat sports), submitting their opponent using any legal holds or techniques. It emph ...

, which in turn partially inspired

folkstyle wrestling Collegiate wrestling, commonly referred to as folkstyle wrestling, is the form of amateur wrestling, wrestling practiced at the Tertiary education, post-secondary level in the United States. This style of wrestling is also practiced at the Secon ...

freestyle wrestling Freestyle wrestling is a style of wrestling. It is one of two styles of wrestling contested in the Olympic Games, along with Greco-Roman wrestling, Greco-Roman. scholastic wrestling, High school wrestling and men's collegiate wrestling in the U ...

, and

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

(MMA).

History

The

ancient India Anatomically modern humans first arrived on the Indian subcontinent between 73,000 and 55,000 years ago. The earliest known human remains in South Asia date to 30,000 years ago. Sedentism, Sedentariness began in South Asia around 7000 BCE; ...

n form of wrestling is called

malla-yuddha Malla-yuddha (Sanskrit: मल्लयुद्ध, ) is the traditional form of combat-wrestling originating in the Indian subcontinent. It is closely related to Southeast Asian wrestling styles such as naban and is one of the two ancestors o ...

. Practiced at least since the 5th millennium BC, described in the 13th century treatise Malla Purana, it was the precursor of modern Kushti. In the 16th century, northern

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

was conquered by the Central Asian

Mughals The Mughal Empire was an early modern empire in South Asia. At its peak, the empire stretched from the outer fringes of the Indus River Basin in the west, northern Afghanistan in the northwest, and Kashmir in the north, to the highlands of pre ...

, who were of

Turko-Mongol The Turco-Mongol or Turko-Mongol tradition was an ethnocultural synthesis that arose in Asia during the 14th century among the ruling elites of the Golden Horde and the Chagatai Khanate. The ruling Mongol elites of these khanates eventually assim ...

descent. Through the influence of

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

and

Mongolian wrestling Mongolian wrestling, known as Bökh ( Mongolian script: ; Mongolian Cyrillic: Бөх or Үндэсний бөх), is the folk wrestling style of Mongols in Mongolia, Inner Mongolia and other regions where touching the ground with anything other ...

, given time, the local

was supplanted by Persian Koshti. Interestingly, the aspects of Malla-yuddha survived in the culture of the Akhad (wrestling academy): Students are expected to be vegetarian, cook, take care of the facility, and be celibate.

Babur Babur (; 14 February 148326 December 1530; born Zahīr ud-Dīn Muhammad) was the founder of the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. He was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan through his father and mother respectively. He was also ...

, the first Mughal emperor, was a wrestler himself and could reportedly run very fast for a long distance while holding a man under each arm. Mughal-era wrestlers sometimes even wore bagh naka on one hand, in a variation called ''naki ka kushti'' or "claw wrestling". During the late 17th century, Ramadasa travelled the country encouraging Hindus to be physically active in homage to the great god

Hanuman Hanuman (; , ), also known as Maruti, Bajrangabali, and Anjaneya, is a deity in Hinduism, revered as a divine ''vanara'', and a devoted companion of the deity Rama. Central to the ''Ramayana'', Hanuman is celebrated for his unwavering devotio ...

Maratha The Marathi people (; Marathi: , ''Marāṭhī lōk'') or Marathis (Marathi: मराठी, ''Marāṭhī'') are an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group who are native to Maharashtra in western India. They natively speak Marathi, an Indo-A ...

rulers supported Kushti by offering large sums of prize money for tournament champions. It was said that every

boy at the time could wrestle and even women took up the sport. During the colonial period, local princes sustained the popularity of kushti by hosting matches and competitions. Wrestling was the favourite spectator sport of the

Rajput Rājpūt (, from Sanskrit ''rājaputra'' meaning "son of a king"), also called Thākur (), is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating fro ...

s, and were said to look forward to tournaments "with great anxiety". Every

prince or chief had a number of wrestling champions to compete for his entertainment. The greatest wrestling centres were said to be

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

and Panjab region. In 1909, a Bengali merchant named Abdul Jabbar Saudagar intended to unite the local youth and inspire them in the anti-British struggle against the colonists through a display of strength by holding a wrestling tournament. Known as Jabbar-er Boli Khela, this competition has continued through independence and the subsequent partition. It is still held in

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

every Boishakhi Mela (Bengali new year), accompanied by playing of the traditional ''sanai'' (flute) and ''dabor'' (drum), and is one of

Chittagong Chittagong ( ), officially Chattogram, (, ) (, or ) is the second-largest city in Bangladesh. Home to the Port of Chittagong, it is the busiest port in Bangladesh and the Bay of Bengal. The city is also the business capital of Bangladesh. It ...

's oldest traditions. In the more recent past, India had famous wrestlers of the class of the

Great Gama Ghulam Mohammad Baksh Butt (22 May 1878 – 23 May 1960), commonly known by the title Rustam-e-Hind and by the ring name The Great Gama, was a Kashmiri Muslim, pehlwani wrestler and strongman in British India and later, Pakistan. In the ea ...

(of British India and later Pakistan, after partition) and Gobar Goho. India reached its peak of glory in the IV

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the 1951 Asian Games, first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until ...

(later on called Jakarta Games) in 1962 when all the seven wrestlers were placed on the medal list and in between them they won 12 medals in

and

Greco-Roman wrestling Greco-Roman (American English), Graeco-Roman (British English), or classic wrestling (Euro-English) is a style of wrestling that is practiced worldwide. Greco-Roman wrestling was included in the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 and has been i ...

. A repetition of this performance was witnessed again when all the 8 wrestlers sent to the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games is a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations, which consists mostly, but not exclusively, of territories of the former British Empire. The event was first held in 1930 ...

held at

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

, Jamaica had the distinction of getting medals for the country. During the 60s, India was ranked among the first eight or nine wrestling nations of the world and hosted the world wrestling championships in New Delhi in 1967. Pehlwans who compete in wrestling nowadays are also known to cross train in the grappling aspects of

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

and

jujutsu Jujutsu ( , or ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu (both ), is a Japanese martial art and a system of close combat that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdue one or more weaponless or armed and armored opponent ...

. Legendary wrestlers from the bygone era like

Karl Gotch Karl Istaz (born Karel Alfons Ceclie Istaz; August 3, 1924 – July 28, 2007), best known by the ring name , was a competitor and trainer in Professional wrestling, professional, Amateur wrestling, amateur, and catch wrestling, born in Antwerp, B ...

have made tours to

to learn kushti and further hone their skills. Karl Gotch was even gifted a pair of (heavy wooden clubs used for building the arm and shoulder muscles by South Asian wrestlers). The conditioning exercises of pehlwani have been incorporated into many of the conditioning aspects of both

and

shoot wrestling Shoot wrestling is a Japanese hybrid grappling style and combat sport. Shoot wrestling incorporates techniques from various wrestling, submission grappling, kickboxing and karate styles. It was particularly inspired and influenced by catch ...

, along with their derivative systems.

Training

Regimen

Although wrestling in the Indian subcontinent saw changes in the Mughal era and the colonial period, the training regimen has remained the same for over 150 years. Fledgling wrestlers may start as early as 6, but most begin formal training in their teens. They are sent to an

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 ...

or traditional wrestling school where they are put under the apprenticeship of the local guru. Their only training attire is the kowpeenam or loincloth. ''Vyayam'' or physical training is meant to build strength and develop muscle bulk and flexibility. Exercises that employ the wrestler's own bodyweight include the

Surya Namaskara Sun Salutation, also called Surya Namaskar or Salute to the Sun (, ), is a practice in yoga as exercise incorporating a flow sequence of some twelve linked asanas. The asana sequence was first recorded as yoga in the early 20th century, though s ...

, shirshasana, and the

danda In Indic scripts, the daṇḍa (Sanskrit: दण्ड ' "stick") is a punctuation mark. The glyph consists of a single vertical stroke. Use The daṇḍa marks the end of a sentence or line, comparable to a full stop (period) as commonly us ...

, which are also found in hatha

yoga Yoga (UK: , US: ; 'yoga' ; ) is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines that originated with its own philosophy in ancient India, aimed at controlling body and mind to attain various salvation goals, as pra ...

, as well as the bethak. Sawari (from

''savâri'', meaning "the passenger") is the practice of using another person's body weight to add resistance to such exercises. Indian wrestler exercising

Exercise regimens may employ the following weight training devices: *The ''nal'' is a hollow stone cylinder with a handle inside. *The ''gar nal'' (neck weight) is a circular stone ring worn around the neck to add resistance to ''danda'' and ''bethak''. *The

gada (mace) The gada (Sanskrit: गदा ''gadā'', Kannada: ''ಗದೆ'', Telugu: ''గద'', Tamil: ''கதை'', Malay: ''gedak'', Old Tagalog: ''batuta'') is a mallet or blunt mace from the Indian subcontinent. Made either of wood or metal, it con ...

is a club associated with

. An exercise gada is a heavy round stone attached to the end of a meter-long bamboo stick. Trophies take the form of gada made of silver and gold. *

Indian club Indian clubs, known in Iran as meels (), are a type of exercise equipment used to present resistance in movement to develop strength and mobility. They consist of juggling-club shaped wooden clubs of varying sizes and weights, which are swung in ...

s, a pair of . Exercise regimens may also include which involve twisting rotations, rope climbing, log pulling and running. Massage is regarded an integral part of a wrestler's exercise regimen. A typical training day will go as follows: * 3 AM: Wake up and perform press-ups (''danda'') and squats (''bethak''), as many as 4000. Run for 5 miles, followed by swimming and lifting stone and sandbags. * 8 AM: Teachers watch as the trainees wrestle each other in earth pits continuously for 3 hours. This is around 25 matches in a row. Matches start with the senior wrestlers. The youngest go last. * 11 AM: Wrestlers are given an oil massage before resting. * 4 PM: After another massage, trainees wrestle each other for another 2 hours. * 8 PM: The wrestler goes to sleep.

Diet

According to the

Samkhya Samkhya or Sankhya (; ) is a dualistic orthodox school of Hindu philosophy. It views reality as composed of two independent principles, '' Puruṣa'' ('consciousness' or spirit) and '' Prakṛti'' (nature or matter, including the human mind a ...

school of Hindu philosophy, everything in the universe—including people, activities, and foods—can be sorted into three

guna Guna may refer to: People * Guna people, Indigenous peoples of Panama and Colombia Philosophy * Guṇa, a Hindu philosophical concept * Guṇa (Jainism), a philosophical concept Places * Guna district, in Madhya Pradesh, India ** Guna, Indi ...

sattva ''Sattva'' (Sanskrit: सत्त्व, meaning ''goodness'') is one of the three '' guṇas'' or "modes of existence" (tendencies, qualities, attributes), a philosophical and psychological concept understood by the Samkhya school of Hindu philo ...

(calm/good),

rajas ''Rajas'' (Sanskrit: रजस्) is one of the three '' guṇas'' (tendencies, qualities, attributes), a philosophical and psychological concept developed by the Samkhya school of Hindu philosophy.James G. Lochtefeld, Rajas, in The Illustrated ...

(passionate/active), and tamas (dull/lethargic). Butterschmalz-3

As a vigorous activity, wrestling has an inherently

ic nature, which pehlwan counteract through the consumption of sattvic foods. Milk and

ghee Ghee is a type of clarified butter, originating from South Asia. It is commonly used for cooking, as a Traditional medicine of India, traditional medicine, and for Hinduism, Hindu religious rituals. Description Ghee is typically prepared by ...

are regarded as the most sattvic of foods and, along with almonds, constitute the holy trinity of the ''pehlwani khurak'' (from

خوراک پهلوانی ''khorâk-e pahlavâni''), or diet. A common snack for pehlwan are

chickpeas The chickpea or chick pea (''Cicer arietinum'') is an annual legume of the family Fabaceae, subfamily Faboideae, cultivated for its edible seeds. Its different types are variously known as gram," Bengal gram, garbanzo, garbanzo bean, or Egypt ...

that have been sprouted overnight in water and seasoned with salt, pepper and lemon; the water in which the chickpeas were sprouted is also regarded as nutritious. Various articles in the Indian wrestling monthly ''Bharatiya Kushti'' have recommended the consumption of the following fruits: apples, wood-apples, bananas,

figs The fig is the edible fruit of ''Ficus carica'', a species of tree or shrub in the flowering plant family Moraceae, native to the Mediterranean region, together with western and southern Asia. It has been cultivated since ancient times and i ...

, pomegranates,

gooseberries Gooseberry ( or (American and northern British) or (southern British)) is a common name for many species of ''Ribes'' (which also includes currants), as well as a large number of plants of similar appearance, and also several unrelated pl ...

, lemons, and watermelons. Orange juice and green vegetables are also recommended for their sattvic nature. Many pehlwan eat meat due to its high protein content. Famed pehlwan

Dara Singh Dara Singh Randhawa (born Deedar Singh Randhawa; 19 November 1928 – 12 July 2012) was an Indian professional wrestler, actor, director and politician. He started acting in 1952 and was the first sportsman to be nominated to the Rajya Sabha ...

used to eat more than a pound of meat every day. Ideally, wrestlers are supposed to avoid sour and excessively spiced foods such as chatni and achar as well as

chaat Chaat, or chāt (IAST: ''cāṭ)'' () is a family of savoury snacks that originated in India, typically served as an hors d'oeuvre or at roadside tracks from stalls or food carts across South Asia in India, Pakistan, Nepal and Bangladesh. ...

. Mild seasoning with garlic, cumin, coriander, and turmeric is acceptable. The consumption of alcohol, tobacco, and

paan Betel nut chewing, also called betel quid chewing or areca nut chewing, is a practice in which areca nuts (also called "betel nuts") are chewed together with slaked lime and betel leaves for their stimulant and narcotic effects, the prima ...

is strongly discouraged.

Techniques

It has been said that most of the moves found in the wrestling forms of other countries are present in kushti, and some are unique to the Indian subcontinent. These are primarily locks, throws, pins, and submission holds. Unlike its ancient ancestor

, kushti does not permit strikes or kicks during a match. Among the most favoured manoeuvres are the ''dhobi paat'' (shoulder throw) and the ''kasauta'' (strangle pin). Other moves include the ''baharli'', ''dhak'', ''machli gota'' and the ''multani''.

Rules

Wrestling competitions known as ''dangal'' or ''kushti'', are held in villages and as such are variable and flexible. The area is either a circular or square shape, measuring at least fourteen feet across. Rather than using modern mats, South Asian wrestlers train and compete on dirt floors. Before training, the floor is raked of any pebbles or stones. Buttermilk, oil, and red ochre are sprinkled to the ground, giving the dirt its red hue. Water is added every few days to keep it at the right consistency; soft enough to avoid injury but hard enough so as not to impede the wrestlers' movements. Every match is preceded by the wrestlers throwing a few handfuls of dirt from the floor on themselves and their opponent as a form of blessing. Despite the marked boundaries of the arena, competitors may go outside the ring during a match with no penalty. There are no rounds but the length of every bout is specified beforehand, usually about 25–30 minutes. If both competitors agree, the length of the match may be extended. Match extensions are typically around 10–15 minutes. Unlike mat-based wrestling, there is no point scoring system; a win is achieved by pinning the opponent's shoulders and hips to the ground simultaneously, although victory by

knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, ...

, stoppage or

submission Deference (also called submission or passivity) is the condition of submitting to the espoused, legitimate influence of one's superior or superiors. Deference implies a yielding or submitting to the judgment of a recognized superior, out of re ...

is also possible. In some variations of the rules, pinning only the shoulders is sufficient. Bouts are overseen by a referee inside the ring and a panel of two judges watching from the outside.

Titles

Official titles awarded to kushti champions are as follows. Note that the title

Rustam use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = Kabulistan , death_cause = With the conspiracy of his half-brother Shaghad, he fell into a we ...

is actually the name of an Iranian hero from the ''

Shahnameh The ''Shahnameh'' (, ), also transliterated ''Shahnama'', is a long epic poem written by the Persian literature, Persian poet Ferdowsi between and 1010 CE and is the national epic of Greater Iran. Consisting of some 50,000 distichs or couple ...

'' epic. *"

Rustam-e-Hind Ghulam Mohammad Baksh Butt (22 May 1878 – 23 May 1960), commonly known by the title Rustam-e-Hind and by the ring name The Great Gama, was a Kashmiri Muslim, pehlwani wrestler and strongman in British India and later, Pakistan. In the ea ...

": Champion of India.

from Punjab, Sadika Gilgoo (Siddique Pehlwan), Krishan Kumar from Haryana, Muhammad Buta Pehlwan, Imam Baksh Pehlwan, Hamida Pehlwan, Vishnupant Nagrale, Dadu Chougule and Harishchandra Birajdar (Lion of India) from Maharashtra, Mangla Rai from

and Pehlwan Shamsher Singh (Punjab Police) held the Rustam-e-Hind title in the past. Vishnupant Nagrale was the first wrestler ever to hold this title. *Rustum-e-Pakistan: Also spelled as Rustum-i-Pakistan. Pakistan Champion. *Rustum-e-Punjab: Champion of Punjab, Pakistan. *" Maharashtra Kesari": Lion of Maharashtra. Maharashtra Kesari is an Indian-style wrestling championship. Narsinh Yadav (three-time winner) *" Rustam-e-Panjab" : (also spelled Rustam-i-Panjab) Champion of Panjab, India. Pehlwan Shamsher Singh (Punjab Police) Pehlwan Salwinder Singh Shinda was a six time Rustam-e-Panjab,. *" Rustam-e-Zaman": World Champion.

became known as Rustam-e-Zaman when he defeated

Stanislaus Zbyszko Stanisław Jan Cyganiewicz (April 1, 1880 – September 23, 1967), better known by his ring name Stanislaus Zbyszko, and frequently referred to in the contemporary English-language press as Zbysco, was a Polish strongman and professional wrestle ...

in 1910. *" Bharat-Kesari": Best heavyweight wrestler in Hindi. Recent winners include Chandra Prakash Mishra (Gama Pahalwan), Krishan Kumar(1986), Rajeev Tomar (Railways), Pehlwan Shamsher Singh (Punjab Police) and Palwinder Singh Cheema (Punjab police). *" Hind Kesari": Winner of 1969 Hind Kesari Harishchandra Birajdar (Maharashtra) (Lion of India), Winner of 1986 Hind Kesari, Krishan Kumar (Bhaproda, Haryana), Winner of 2013 Hind Kesari, Amol Barate (Maharashtra); Winner of 2015 Hind Kesari, Sunil Salunkhe (Maharashtra), *Amazon of Aligarh: This is an exclusive unofficial title given to a female wrestler, Hamida Banu, in the first half of the 20th century.

other

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 ...

Boli Khela Boli Khela or Bali Khela () is a traditional form of wrestling in Bangladesh, particularly popular in the Chittagong area considered as a national game of the district. It is a form of combat sport involving grappling type techniques such as ...

Gatka Gatka (; ; ; ) is a form of martial art associated primarily with the Sikhs of the Punjab and other related ethnic groups, such as Hindkowans and Pahari-Pothwari. It is a style of stick-fighting, with wooden sticks intended to simulate sw ...

* Gatta Gusthi *

Inbuan Inbuan is a form of wrestling native to the people of Mizoram in India. Inbuan is said to have been played in the village of Dungtlang in 1750. Its origin is believed to be far back during the time the Mizo people first entered Chin state in the ...

Kabbadi Kabaddi (, ) is a contact team sport played between two teams of seven players. It is one of the traditional games of South Asia. In this game, a raider enters the opposing half of the court to touch defenders and attempt to return within 30 ...

* List of Pehlwani wrestlers * Malakhra *

Mukna Mukna is a form of folk wrestling from the north-east Indian state of Manipur. It is popular in Imphal, Thoubal and Bishnupur. The game is generally played on the last day of the Lai Haraoba festival and is an intrinsic part of the ceremonial fu ...

Pahlevani and zoorkhaneh rituals Pahlevani and zourkhaneh rituals is the name inscribed by UNESCO for Warzesh-e pahlavāni (, "heroic sport") or Warzeŝe Bāstāni (; , "ancient sport"), a traditional system of athletics and a form of martial arts originally used to train wa ...

Vajra-mushti Vajra-musti (Sanskrit:, "thunder fist" or "diamond fist") refers to a fist-load, knuckleduster-like weapon and also a form of Indian wrestling in which the weapon is employed. The weapon is sometimes called ''Indra-musti'', meaning "Indra's fist ...

Wrestling in India Wrestling is one of the oldest sports in India. Several regional styles and variations in folk wrestling exists in the country. Indian wrestlers have won numerous medals at international competitions in freestyle wrestling. History Wrestling has ...

* Wrestling in Pakistan *

Pehlivan Pehlivan or Pahlevan derives from Iranian language word meaning ''noble'', ''wrestler'', ''hero'' or ''champion'' and it is a loan word in many Asiatic languages as well as middle eastern languages including Turkish surname originally given to wres ...

* Hyderabadi Pahalwan *

History of physical training and fitness Physical training has been present in some human society, human societies throughout history. Usually, people trained to prepare for physical competition or display, to improve physical, emotional and mental health, and to look attractive. The ...

References

External links

The Wrestler’s Body: Identity and Ideology in North IndiaPakistan's pehlwans wrestle to surviveFighting Scene in Indian Cinemas
{{Indian martial arts Indian martial arts Wrestling in India Wrestling in Pakistan Folk wrestling styles Indian inventions Traditional sports of India Traditional sports of Pakistan Sports originating in India Sports originating in South Asia Traditional sports of Bangladesh Sindhi games