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Pehlwani (also spelled as '''pahlwani''') is a form of Wrestling native to India .The name Pehlwani is a result of the relatively recent influence of countries like Turkey and Iran .Though,the Indian Wrestling sport itself existed much earlier under the name of '''Mallayuddha'''. A practitioner of this sport is referred to as a ''pehlwan'' (also spelled ''pahlwan'' from Persian Pahlavan, champion, literally a Parthian). An expert or master of this art style of wrestling is called a Guru/"Ustad" (great teacher). In its modern form of pehlwani in India is heavily influenced by the traditional Indian art of Mallayuddha. The Indian wrestling is not barred by protective limitations in Joint Lock s, etc. like in amateur competitons in the west. Dangals (wrestling competitons) are held at village levels and have their own rules which vary from place to place but usually a win is awarded by either a decision from the a panel of judges, Knockout , stoppage or Submission . The rules do not allow Striking but do allow the application of many joint locks and Submission Holds . Chokes , though, are not allowed. HISTORY The earliest wrestlers in India practiced the Mallayuddha style of wrestling very often. Incidences of mythological warriors wrestling without weapons are plentiful in the epics of Ramayana and the Mahabharatha . Wrestling has been very popular in India from ancient times and history bears eloquent testimony to this. There is the memorable fight between Bhima and Jarasandha narrated in the Mahabharata and the dual between Rustom and Sohrab mentioned in Shah Nama (the Persian book of kings). India has produced world-class wrestlers like Bhima and Karna . Balram brother of lord Krishna was a renowned Wrestler of his time. In the Ramayan there is mention of King Bali of Vanaras , having won against the mighty Ravana , the king of Lanka in the "Mall Yuddha"( Mallayuddha ) wrestling contest. The name of Bajarang Bali i.e. Hanuman ji is symbolic with India n Wrestling and even today people worship him for his prowess and might and seek his blessings for victory. During Sivaji 's regime we hear of his son Sambhaji performing great feats in Wrestling and finally tearing a lion with his own hands. Cross Training though,was inevitable even in this ancient dicipline.Pehlwans who compete in wrestling nowadays also practice wrestling which includes techniques from various other forms of wrestling including the grappling aspects of Judo and Ju Jitsu . Having said that, the popularity of this strong tradition seems to be slowly withering away on the Indian Subcontinent . More recently, Oil Wrestling is making a comeback in Turkey . Legendary wrestlers from the bygone era eg. Karl Gotch have made tours to the traditional "Milked Sand wrestling pits" in India to learn the art of Pehlwani and further hone their skills. Karl Gotch was gifted a pair of "mudgals" (exercise equipment used by the India n wrestlers) by the Indian Wrestler s. India in the recent past had world beaters of the class of Great Gama and Gobar Goho . India reached its peak of glory in the IV Asian Games (later on called Jakarta Games ) in 1962 when all the seven Wrestlers were placed on the Medal list and in between them they bagged 12 medals in Freestyle Wrestling and Greco-Roman Wrestling . A repetition of this performance was witnessed again when all the 8 Wrestlers sent to the Commonwealth Games held at Kingston ( Jamaica ) had the distinction of getting Medals for the country. During the 60’s, 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. The undefeated Champions of India hold the title Rustum-i-Hind title . FAMOUS PEHLWANS Olympic Freestyle Wrestlers
Asian Games Freestyle Wrestlers
Legendary Indian Wrestlers
PEHLWANI ASSOCIATED WITH PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING Professional Wrestlers ( Professional Wrestling is an orchestrated sport and has been created so that it is entertaining, hence the term, Sports Entertainment . Although some of it seems to have an element of realism, it is mostly choregraphed, where the fate of the match has been pre-decided. Everything in WWE , TNA and other professional wrestling promotions have to do with more acrobatics and storyline angles than the non-choregraphed Amateur Wrestling .)
PEHLWANI TITLES Indian Wrestling Titles
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