Quite the fight

As we wade through a crowd of students at Thakur College in Kandivali and slowly approach a corner we hear unfamiliar grunts loud exhales and hisses But even more alien to us is the sound of the word kurash defined as a traditional form of Uzbeki martial arts which finds some recognition in the room we step intoWhile judokas wrestle before us boxers deliver punches behind its a mix of the martial arts all in one space We meet Gaurav Pandey MK Ali Rizvi and Darshana Lakhani part of the team behind the Mumbai Kurash Association Suburban an organisation formed in 2016 after a nationallevel tournament they organised in Kalina with around 400 participants from across the country and 12 international delegates And where Jagdish Tytler credited with introducing kurash to India in the 1990s was chief guestRaj Kumar Gupta and Nitesh DhawalThe sport in the state was helmed by the Maharashtra Kurash Association that ceases to exist after the dissolution of its committee when its president resigned With no formal body to preside over the state the association and players are looking for some direction The game has also failed to make it to the revised District Sports Office DSO list which translates into a missed opportunity for potential players who might want to strictly specialise in kurash If one starts to play a sport and suddenly after a couple of years they see it losing recognition why would they bother taking it up again So they resort to the more popular options like judo Once its in the DSO list students themselves will take interest Risvi explainsKurash involves frequent stoppage in contrast to other forms of martial arts Both players must stand throughout the game and throwing the opponent off their feet on the back results in a win A full point is termed as halal and there are different weight categories for both men and women Thus it is in stark contrast to judo where ground movement is allowed So it becomes easier for a judo player to adapt to kurash A sportsperson who specialises in the latter requires more training says Lakhani Which is why when we reached out to the kurash association in Thane it wasnt suprising to hear them decline to speak to us on the sport maintaining that their focus was judoIn kurash when a player throws an opponent off their feet on the back the game is won as demonstrated by judo players Rutuja Surve and Natasha SinghBoth Pincky Balhara and Malaprabha Jadhav who won medals at the recently concluded Asian Games were judokas who didnt have money to pay for their kits As Pandey describes it that is the reality in Mumbai too In addition to the cost players have to bear there are venue costs and referee and certificate charges he states But like in every sport other than cricket the biggest challenge comes with drawing an audienceGaurav Pandey and Darshana LakhaniThat remains Pandeys mission People need to come and cheer players even at the smallest of events Only then will there be investors There is a growing market for sport and now one can even make a career out of it after retirementMK Ali RizviEarly beginningsThe earliest mentions of the sport are present in the writings of Herodotus in 5th century BC in Histories where he analyses customs and traditions of Central Asia In the 14th century Amir Timur the infamous TurcoMongol commander who never lost a battle prescribed kurash training to his soldiersQuick comparison Kurash doesnt have a belt grading system like in common martial art forms such as judo karate or taekwondo Owing to a similar style of play many judo players gravitate towards kurash in tournaments As compared to the other forms of martial arts kurash involves very little injury due to the stoppage involved although you can throw your opponent in more than 60 different waysCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates