Wrestlemania: Dangal in the concrete jungle

Abuses and expletives frothed out of screaming mouths...

Abuses and expletives frothed out of screaming mouths,resonating the width and breadth of the arena. As Rajender Kumar clogged his blood-spurting nostril,the violence had triggered off the animal in the paying public,who showered verbal filth as a herd. Slinking away behind his coach as Rajender writhed in pain,Azhar Hussain silently must have thanked his lucky stars and the invisible shield of sports diplomatic immunities.

It wasnt a bout between two grapplers that is too westernised and recreational a concept. It was more a kushti between two pehelwans,completely catering to the subcontinental mentality. All that was missing was the subliminal effervescence of red clay the smell of monsoon silt – and the khadi loin cloth. In place of the mud was a rexine mat inside a state-of-the-art wrestling stadium; and instead of the traditional akhara wear,the pehelwans wore body-hugging singlets. But the atmosphere and the crowds more than made up for all that was missing.

The audiences had poured into the Indira Gandhi Indoor stadium in tractor-fulls,to witness a modern day version of a dangal – the term used in the northern regions of India and Pakistan to describe a wrestling challenge. The match-up too,between Pakistans Hussain and home favourite Rajender in the medal round of the 55 kg category,only accentuated the ambience.

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Although the spectators were used to the no-holds-barred style of wrestling,they quickly caught up with the rule-bound version of the Greco-Roman style – where a wrestler cannot use his or the opponents legs for a position of advantage. Soon after the wrestlers locked shoulders on the mat,the near full-house swore collectively at every grip,hold and fall.

Rajender quickly took control of his opponent,pinning him to the surface repeatedly. While even one of those moves would have ended the contest,ensuring a healthy cash reward in a street match,the Indian was forced to be satisfied with points for his efforts. The opening round belonged to Rajender – who was leading by a whopping 5-0 margin – when his rivals flailing elbow made his nose an easy target. The round resumed after Rajender received medical attention,but the bout had now become a village brawl.

The crowd controlled the affair in the second round with their words,as Rajender responded like their adrenaline-injected puppet. While Hussain got into damage-control mode,using every self-protection ploy in the book,Rajender made a mockery of his body-fixed-to-the-ground defence. Clasping his opponent around the hip,Rajender tossed Hussains body a 180 degrees,executing a picture-perfect body flip. Despite having earned five points for the move,Rajender held the deadlock position until time ran out,as the noise exploded into crescendo. The 11-0 decimation was worth its weight in gold for Rajender,but more importantly,a village tradition was reborn,taking seed in an alien and techno-savvy stadium.