The Legend of Dara Singh

[Pay Per Ghost]

This comes at hours after this man's passing and for Indians everywhere this man WAS wrestling for a long time. He propagated the Indian art of wrestling or Kushti, and toured overseas many a times, taking this form of wrestling to various stadiums and events. The man had a glittering career in movies and television, and was a larger than life legend.

And that is the biggest understatement I can give you.

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For a more familiar perspective I give you Lou Thesz's words via Meltzer's sheets about the man:

Lou Thesz always spoke highly of Singh's ability and he wasn't very loose with praise for people's wrestling ability. When Thesz left the National Wrestling Alliance in 1957, giving up the world title to Dick Hutton, and going to Europe with his belt and billed as world champion, his top foe at the time was Singh.... Thesz noted that there was nobody else there of his caliber and he wished there were others so he could do a three-way program.... He said his program with Singh drew well, but because there was nobody else, after a while things slowed down because there was nobody else at that level who could keep it fresh.... After Thesz dropped the NWA title again in 1966, Singh brought him in and they played it up that there were return matches from the England series. During a heyday of pro wrestling in India in the late 60s, Singh had one or two cricket stadium shows with Thesz that drew 50,000 fans with Thesz dropping what was billed as the world title to Singh.

Dara Singh was rated by wrestling historian Charles Mascall as the tenth greatest heavyweight wrestler of all time. This heavyweight champion from Amristar had arrived in the UK during the autumn of 1957 and his British record was littered with drawn results before his famed draw against Lou Thesz at the Royal Albert Hall on 11th December. A man who drew many accolades but his claim to fame was bringing mass awareness and popularity to Kushti.

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During his time when he hopped between movies and wrestling events there was a tremendous hike in people hitting the Akhada (local gym) and learning the trade. Ever see Iron Sheik with his Persian Clubs? The Indian style is very similar to that as well and Dara Singh grew up and matured in the local ranks of Punjab, India. It is a true shame that we don't have his matches with Lou Thesz and Stanilaus Zybysko on tape, but his encounters with the Hungarian super-heavyweight King Kong punctuated an iconic and sentimental rivalry in Asia in the 50s and 60s. His foray into movies drew even more popularity towards wrestling as he was almost always cast the strong man babyface who would use wrestling holds to beat his enemies. At a time where the frail, sentimental man was the talk of Bollywood, Dara Singh made it cool to be macho and burly. The clip may seem comical for us now, but for the 60s, that was as sci-fi as sci-fi could be and almost all of the producers banked on Dara Singh to rousing receptions and box office success.


The man spent his life doing everything to promote wrestling and even after he retired from movies he would still be a part of local wrestling events and if anyone asks him, Khali will tell you in the upcoming days what this man meant to him and his wrestling trainer as they grew up learning and plying their trade. Personally, the man was untouchable. His prowess earned his the title of Rustam-E-Hind or Mr. India. His stature was mythical and was in all true honesty,THE Indian hero and lived the part all his life.

His body of work and accolades shall never be forgotten.

 

[eddy_19]

Being an Indian, I know the legacy of this man. Grand Salute to the 'Rustam-e-Hind'... He truly was larger than Life. His accolades are endless and he was so kind-hearted and humble person you won't belive that he was a Legend. May his soul Rest in Peace and God bless the earth with many such persons.

 

[Reflection]

The first mainstream wrestler from our country, and he took the game to an international level. He was a person who we all could be proud of (and we still are). I remember that time when he called out Khali on "not being a mahavali because he loses every now and then", and Khali said "Why's he after me? Why doesn't he mess with undertaker or Big Show instead?" It was all over the news. His role as 'Hanuman' in Ramayan back in the 80s was also legendary and made him popular among every household; people used to say to their kids "eat well and become strong like Dara Singh"... With his death, India has lost a precious gem. He'll be missed. Rest in Peace, the original tough guy.

 

[HBsam31]

Sounds like a great great man. Until now I was not to familiar with him, and would like to thank you for giving me a brief look into this man's life. It is good for American fans to see that there is more than the WWE out there. May Dara Singh rest in peace, and thanks to the OP for paying tribute to him.

 

[The Prodigal Anti-Lemming]

Dara Singh was able to attain such great stardom in Indian wrestling only largely due to the efforts of Gama the Great, the ring legend that came before him. Unfortunately for Singh, Gama basically controlled the Indian mat wrestling scene during his time as a wrestler. What that meant was that Gama was the champion, and as he aged, he became more and more reluctant to appear in the ring in defense of his crown. As the nation's leading wrestlers were essentially barred from competing for the top title, this led to a dilution in competition...by the fifties, fewer men were training to become wrestlers, compared to a generation prior, when wrestling was so serious a matter that the training tactics of East Indian wrestlers were considered to be more rigid and disciplined than anywhere else in the world.

Basically, Gama was THE star, and he was unwilling to give up that spotlight. To put it in perspective, the same thing happened in American women's wrestling when Fabulous Moolah took control of the NWA women's title from 1956 through 1984, lost the belt a number of times and never so much as acknowledged it.

Dara Singh, while a solid wrestler, was an international sensation on the level of Bert Assirati...that is to say, he gained enormous stardom in his home country, but never really caught on in the United States.