Considered as one of the most ancient and oldest sports in the world, wrestling in India has glorious past. The game of Wrestling started its journey in India several centuries back, during the middles ages. Wrestling is counted amongst the most prestigious and oldest events in the Olympic Games, as it was included in the Olympics in 708 BC. In the ancient times, Wrestling in India was mainly used as a wonderful way to stay physically fit. It was also used as a great way of military exercise without any weapons. Wrestling in India is also known as `dangal` and it is the basic form of a wrestling tournament.
Wrestling in India is most famously known as Malla-Yuddha. Some forms of Mallayuddha were practiced in India even before the invasion of the Aryan. The famous Indian epic, Mahabharata has a huge mention about the game of Wrestling in India. One of the premier characters in Mahabharata, Bhima was considered to be a great Wrestler of that time and some of the other great wrestlers included Jarasandha, Duryodhan, Karna etc. In the other Indian epic, Ramayana also mentions about Wrestling in India and Hanuman is described as one of the greatest wrestlers of that time. The thirteenth century Malla Purana has the reference of a group of Gujarati Brahmin wrestlers known as Jyesthimallas.
Wrestling in India, during the ancient times, used to get regular patronage from the Emperors and Kings. The kings of pre-independence nurtured Wrestling in India to a large extent. The Indian Kings used to keep the wrestlers in good diet and provide them with pulses, meat, milk, sugar and high quality sweets. The wrestlers used to keep themselves engaged inside the wrestling court and concentrate on bodybuilding, all the time. The Indian Kings had many stables and `court` wrestlers, who represented them against the wrestlers of their rival Kings. During the British rule, Wrestling in India got another big push, as the British rulers included the game into the military practise. The British military including Indian soldiers got attracted to wrestling, very much.
Wrestling in India can be divided into two main categories like Malla Krida and Malla-Yuddha. While Malla Krida is the sports form of the game, Malla-Yuddha is the battle version of Wrestling. There are also some other forms of Wrestling in India, out of which, the free-style varieties are more common than all the other forms, since Vedic times. The free-style varieties of Wrestling in India are known as Pushti or Kushti. Wrestling in India can also be divided into 4 types like Bhimaseni, Hanumanthi, Jambuvanthi and Jarasandhi, based on the technique and methodology. The technical superiority of the Wrestler matters the most in the Hanumanthi type of Wrestling. The wrestler can get victory over the opponent of even greater strength, by his technical superiority. In the Jambuvanti Wrestling, the wrestlers apply locks and holds to get control over the opponent. The Jarasandhi form of Wrestling is mainly focused on the breaking of the limbs and joints of the opponent and hence, it is considered as the most dangerous form of Wrestling in India. The other type, Bhimaseni is for those wrestlers, who have huge build and strength. This form of Wrestling gives pressure on acquiring the strength and then using it.
Based on the holds and methods of selecting the winner, wrestling in India can also be divided into another two categories like the Orthia type and the Kato Pale. In Orthia type, the wrestler has to throw the opponent on the ground for three times consecutively to win the match. The process continues until one wrestler comes out with flying colours. The Kato Pale type of Wrestling demands the wrestler to accept defeat by raising his right hand with the index finger pointed. However, the rules of Wrestling in India vary region wise.
Wrestling in India continued to increase its popularity till the modern days and India was considered among the top 10 countries in Wrestling till the 1960s. India also hosted the World Wrestling Championship in New Delhi in 1967. Being called as `Pehelwan`, the Indian wrestlers take part in wrestling sport and also get trainings in few aspects of Judo and Jutusu. The Indian wrestlers used to compete in the wrestling competitions and practise in a 20x20 deep stone courtyard full of clay and water or milk. However, in the modern times, wrestling mats and rings have replaced them.
Wrestling in India has witnessed the rising of several eminent wrestlers, so far. The legendary Indian wrestler, Karim Bux became the first wrestler to defeat Tom Canon of England in 1892. Another eminent Indian wrestler, Gobar Goho became the World Champion in Wrestling in San Francisco in 1922, by defeating the hook wrestler Ad Santel. The renowned Indian freestyle wrestler, Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadav won bronze medal in the 1952 Olympic Games. Another eminent Indian wrestler was Salwinder Singh Shinda, who won the Chandigarh Kesari Award, for four times. Some of the other legendary wrestlers in India include Kikkar Singh, Gulam, Rajeev Tomar, Arjuna Awardees like Anuj Chaudhury and Malkit Singh Kanjli.
Apart from them, in the recent years, Wrestling in India is watching the rising of some wrestlers, who have a high potential to revive the dominance of India in the international Wrestling arena. The famous Indian wrestler, Sushil Kumar has won Bronze medal in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games. Apart from the conventional way of Wrestling, there is also another type of Wrestling in India that has earned significant popularity, now-a-days. This is called as sports entertainment and the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) and TNA are two of the most popular events in this form of Wrestling. Some Indian wrestlers have become popular in this form of wrestling also. The wrestlers include, Sonjay Dutt (TNA), Dalip Singh (the Great Khali of WWE), Dara Singh, Tiger Jeet Singh etc.
Wrestling in India is being run and managed by a number of associations at the state and national level. The national body for Wrestling in India, the wrestling Federation of India (WFI) came into existence in 1967 and it has been promoting the game in India, since then. Apart from that, there are also several state level Wrestling associations that are working in collaboration with the WFI for the management of Wrestling in India. The associations present many awards and Wrestling titles to the Indian wrestlers. Some of the most prestigious Wrestling titles include the Rustam-i-Hind that means Wrestling Champion of India, the Rustam-e-Punjab, the Rustam-i-Zamana, and the Bharat-Kesri that is given to the Best Heavyweight Wrestler of India.
