Sandeep Dhopate

Sandeep Dhopate (b. 1975, India) is a Mumbai-based photographer. He changed careers after pursuing an education in engineering then computer science. After 12 years in the corporate world, he left to study commercial photography and has been a freelance photographer since 2012, shooting lookbooks, catalogues, print campaigns as well as portfolios for actors and models. His personal projects focus on India’s slowly disappearing cultures.

Fighting Into Oblivion

This series forms a part of a wider series that Dhopate has shot over 4 years which examines the various cultural acts of Maharashtra that are slowly dying. ‘Kushti’ (Mud Wrestling) as a sport is not new to the world. It has been widely covered by photojournalists, but the artist wanted to approach the sport in a more glamorised fashion rather than the documentary style aesthetic, reflecting the way many of the more contemporary and popular sports are treated in India.

The daily routine of the ‘Pahelwaans’ (sportsmen) who dedicate a large proportion of their lives to the sport is noteworthy. Rising at 3am everyday to exercise, these Pahelwaans follow a strict routine involving prayers, workouts, regimented meals and an almost military level discipline of behaviour. Observing from afar, attributes of identity, place, rootedness and belonging in their lifestyles become apparent. At the same time, when one looks closely and takes into account the global influences that have appeared in India regarding sexuality, religion and technology, their lifestyle seems to be one of isolation and alienation.

Kushti is a very strong contact sport, one whose physical rituals can come across as almost sexual in nature, such as the ‘maalish’ routine (massaging your fellow Pahelwaan with oil). The sport itself involves grabbing the ‘kaccha’ (piece of cloth wrapped around the groin) of the opponent in order to put him down on his back on the ground. The process of oiling and smearing yourself with the sand appears to be in order to reduce friction so that the opponent has difficulty gripping you.

What struck Dhopate the most was that, despite being aware of such misconceptions concerning sexuality and religion, these sportsmen, mostly with minimal education, hold on to their independent beliefs and revere the sport for virtuous values it imparts. Few sports in India deliver such innately rooted values of self-discipline and humility. In rural towns and villages, parents continue to send their young wards to exercise with the Pahelwaans, with an expectation that these values will be passed on. And the Pahelwaans selflessly do all that is expected – with pride and without charge.

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