Women wrestlers make history in Varanasi akhada
On Friday, since early morning, the crowd swelled towards Tulsi Ghat to watch wrestlers pin each other down in the desi 'dav-pench' grips on the turf made of soil.
Traditionally, Nagpanchami is the day when dangals are organised in akhadas in many parts of the country, and the ones in Varanasi's famous akhada, Swaminath, at Tulsi Ghat are no exception.
On Friday, since early morning, the crowd swelled towards Tulsi Ghat to watch wrestlers pin each other down in the desi 'dav-pench' grips on the turf made of soil.
But, this time, women spectators also thronged the "men-only" sports arena to watch the popular annual wrestling contest.
The reason? This was the first time in 478 years that the ancient soil turf at Tulsi Ghat had allowed access to women. The credit for this goes to the Aamir Khan starrer Dangal, says the organiser, Sankatmochan Foundation.A dozen girls from the neighbouring districts of Uttar Pradesh participated in the contest, making history in Varanasi, regarded as the world's oldest inhabited city.
Tulsi Ghat is named after the great Hindu poet of the 16th century, Tulsidas, who composed the great Indian epic, Ramcharitmanas, at Varanasi. He had started the dangal at this bank, according to legend. The akhada is credited with producing several award-winning wrestlers, such as Kallu Pehlwan.
Three rounds of matches were held, with half the girls being eliminated in each round. In the end, four girls were declared as the winners by Sankatmochan Foundation.
"It was amazing to wrestle at the place where my grandpa Kallu Pahlwan and his pupils practised for years," says Palak Yadav (10), one of the winners, who is among scores of girls in UP who took up wrestling after watching Dangal, released last year.
The credit for breaking the gender stereotype and the age-old tradition is being given to Dr Vishambhar Nath Mishra, a professor and the mahant of the Sankatmochan temple in Varanasi.
"Our home in Varanasi is the place where Rani Laxmibai was born. By opening the ancient Akhada for women wrestlers, we wish to encourage girls to take forward the Laxmibai's valour and courage," says Dr Vijaya Nath Mishtra, the mahant's brother and a neurologist.