Jinder Mahal- Shit or get off the pot

[Nate DaMac]

This is a simple thread. I'm going to state my opinion on Jinder Mahal and his potential or lack thereof, then you can give yours, dispute mine, or both. Okay? Okay.

Character- He's a rich Indian man. Nothing groundbreaking, but it's something that has worked before. The evil foreigner schtick has been used all throughout history and the success of the charatcer is all based on the performance of the person portraying it.

Ring Work- This is something I'm not much of an expert on when it comes to Jinder. I have no idea how well he works in the ring because I've never really seen him in anything other than squash matches, being squashed or squashing. I can say that he doesn't appear to be sloppy and he can probably work a decent match, but I can't really justify calling him good or bad until he works a regular program and gets some real matches under his belt.

Charisma- I think he has it. He's someone like Kane or Randy Orton, as in he doesn't blow you away with every word but he's articulate and gets his point across without sounding like he's reading from a teleprompter. I still need to see more before I emphatically state that he is charismatic, but I think I see some natural charisma in him.

Crowd Connection- Obviously has next to nothing in this department, but that's going to happen when you're featured sporadically on television and you're only involved in squashes or beatdowns. However, his appearance alone garners him a minimal amount of heat.

Potential​

The central theme to all of these points I've made is this: I think that he has the tools to become a mainstay in the WWE. He has a character that he knows how to portray accurately, he appears to have enough charisma to garner heat from the crowd, and he has the look necessary to separate him from the herd of vanilla mid carders.

I'm not saying that he's a future main event player or even a World Title holder. But with the right push, he could certainly be a guy to step into a title match as heel fodder for one of the big dogs. Who knows, maybe if he gets an opportunity like that, he will show that he really belongs.

Off to you.

 

[Mustang Sally]

The evil foreigner schtick has been used all throughout history and the success of the charatcer is all based on the performance of the person portraying it.

Agreed. It's the type of act that works best when he's angry about something, and the expression on his face is one of eternal displeasure, isn't it? Jinder did his best work when playing off Khali, which earns him a certain amount of credit since working with Khali means you've got to carry all the dialogue yourself. Of course, a program like that will serve for only a limited duration, and Jinder-Khali ended pretty quickly. I get the feeling that Jinder's next act will be an "I Hate America" program in which he gets heat from the audience for pronouncements to that effect. As the OP says, it's all been done before and Jinder would have to really get our attention to bring it off.

As for the rest, Jinder has a physique more like a basketball player than a wrestler, which makes him look somewhat odd in a wrestling ring. His offense consists mostly of stomping on his opponent and I've yet to see anything from him to get excited about.

It's going to take his sourpuss personality rather than his in-ring ability that gets him a push.

 

[MizMark11]

Jinder is an odd one. I usually turn the channel when he's on and he always appears at random times. First he's feuding with Khali, then he's feuding with Ted, then suddenly he starts attacking and feuding with Sheamus, now he's telling Orton that when he's finished with Kane, Orton will have to deal with Jinder? The guy has no direction and why would Orton waste his time with Jinder Mahal? Also Mahal kept on having his accent switched over. First he didn't have one, then he started talking with a Punjabi one. Also he's been gaining more and more items during his entrance. It's starting to get ridiculous.

I don't know if he has a future. He's not getting over as his current character, so I think he needs a reset. He needs a new gimmick because the rich foreigner in WWE is Del Rio, unless you put them in a tag team(which i think could work). I guess we'll have to wait and see.

 

[VencomHardcore]

Jinder has all the qualities to be a BIG Star. He's has the look, can speak on the mic and can work a good match. You have to watch his FCW work. He does have talent. The problem ?

WWE hasn't figured out where to put him. I have the answer. Let him chase the US TITLE. The anti us rants while carrying the title will make him a heat magnet. He can wear it while degrading the country and it sets up a fan favorite to win it back while making him a smackdown mega heel.

I can't see why creative haven't thought about doing this. Or they should align him with Alberto Del Rio. Two rich guys with money that hate the country but want all that it has. Jinder could get a BIG rub and it would add some depth to his character.

 

[Trance Metaphor]

I think the WWE missed the boat with Jinder Mahal. When he first arrived on the main WWE roster, I wasn't impressed with his squash over Yoshi Tatsu. He didn't show any moves that were unique and befitting to him as a wrestler rather than the foreign character. We've all seen Middle Eastern wrestlers use the camel clutch. He needs new moves. As time went on, I did see some potential in him though. His matches with Sheamus were actually quite good and I thought he'd steal one. He has the look. All he needed was the right guy to feud with. Instead, I think the WWE gave up on him far too soon, because after his program with Khali was over, so was his place on the card. He's not doing anything significant right now. He's as disposable as Yoshi Tatsu is at this point and if he gets cut in the next few weeks, I won't be surprised. I don't care if he's winning matches on Superstars. That's barely relevant 'cause look at what happened to Chris Masters. I thought that guy was gonna get another big chance on the main roster and he was cut over Tyler Reks.

 

[Jack-Hammer]

I made this exact same thread sometime last year and I completely agree. I think that there's potential in this guy but, for whatever reason, WWE hasn't done a thing with him aside from having him get squashed or used as fodder for guys like Orton and Sheamus.

I've seen some of his matches and he's pretty decent in the ring. He's better now than when he first debuted in the WWE and he has the ability to cut a good promo. He speaks well and conveys his character well, only he does half of it in his native tongue. A wrestler cutting a promo partially or almost entirely in another languages bugs the shit out of me like few things in wrestling can. I hate it, flat out hate it. I know that they're doing it with Mahal as India is a country where WWE is growing more popular. That simple fact is probably the only reason Mahal is still with WWE right now.

I do think it's time to do something with this guy or cut him loose.

 

[shaunseven]

facts. the guy who is jinder mahal isnt bad in the ring. he has horrible acne. he is necessary for wwe's indian market. jinder mahal's comlplexion is a deciding factor in how often he's seen on tv.
otr. it's pretty gross. surely youve seen the puss-filled ones on smackdown. if youre watching in hd.

 

[HBsam31]

I definitely like the idea of him going after the US title. Could easily use a hate America routine while holding that belt. I have always thought he at least had potential. His look is good enough and he isn't bad in the ring either. Not saying he should be WWE champ, but there is option for him to get over.

 

[ABMorales787]

They've used the bad foreign guy gimmick so much, it looks generic and boring at this point. I see Jinder come out and talk and it just bores me to tears. I hear him come out and I'm glad WWE skips on subtitles. I'd be bored to tears in two languages. His look is too simple to say it stands out, but as far as I can see, he ain't much.