Arm-wrestling takes centre stage - 15th September 2023

Arm-wrestling is experiencing the magic of Bollywood, as a televised league pushes the ancient sport onto centre stage in India.

The Indian Arm Wrestling Federation was launched in 1977, but the involvement of Bollywood stars Parvin Dabas and Preeti Jhangiani, who set up the Pro Panja league, has started a fresh chapter in the sport's history.

Parvin Dabas: "Our athletes are literally sons and daughters of our soil. Somebody is a government servant, somebody is a gym trainer, somebody is a mechanic, somebody is a farmer. They come from all walks of life and come from small-town India, and that's what we love about it, that's what the audience is getting attracted to."

Panja - the Indian name for arm-wrestling - is a team competition, where the winning side stands to win $24,000. The rules state that every team's made up of men, women and people with disabilities, including athletes who use wheelchairs.

Although across India married women often find their outside activities restricted, Farheen Dehalvi benefitted from the constant support of her husband. And these days, her example motivates other young women to take up training.

Farheen Dehalvi: "Seeing me, girls are getting inspired. Now gyms have opened too, two gyms. Before I entered this league, we didn't even have gyms. Seeing me, two gyms have opened. We need to keep moving forward. It's very good, arm wrestling."

Established in 2020, this is the first season the Panja League will be covered live on the Sony Sports Network in India.

It's perhaps no surprise that this ancient sport, with connections to Hindu mythology, has found a new and wider audience. Once peppered with a little Bollywood magic, it's brought fame and star status to its competitors. There's even hope that arm-wrestling might be designated an Olympic sport in future.