Moti Bagh Taleem - Wrestlers living the dream
Kolhapur is not just famous for the leather sandals and the extravagant thali. It hosts some of the oldest taleems in the country. This is one of the few places where our country's best wrestlers are trained . They come and join the taleem at a very young age. " They have very specific diet and they practice twice a day" says the head coach who was one of the trainers for our gorilla troupes in the Indian army. Taleem is an establishment where wrestlers have been trained traditionally for centuries. All the training used to happen on the mud which is considered sacred. Outsiders are not allowed to step in to the training mud. Wresters and trainers step in to it , only bare foot ! Like any martial art , wrestling has evolved. In order to practice for the highest level of competitions , wrestlers now train on mats. " But , we haven't stopped training on the mud". It's the purest form of wresting. Our wrestlers spare themselves on the m...
