These days, the established professional wrestling promotions have developed a new found love for India. Both TNA and WWE have made their moves to penetrate the market and with WWE hosting a Live Event in Delhi, sky is the limit for fans in India.
What paved way for all these?
Multiple factors actually. The wrestling crazy population, Internet (yeah that), well timed deals from Ten Sports and Sony television, the expansion plans of WWE and TNA, and much more belongs to this list.
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Whenever we have this conversation, one thing that cannot be ignored is the influence of Dalip Singh Rana AKA The Great Khali, a former road worker that went on to become the WWE Champion.
Now, it isn't hard to read what is going through the mind of wrestling purists when they hear his name. In fact, Khali never appealed to the 'real' wrestling fans. He was not a technical marvel like Bret Hart, he didn't have the charisma of Big Show, hell, he didn't even know to pull off a promo.
All these, however, was not enough to stop Khali from becoming the top professional wrestler of India.
Breaking Stones in the road
The journey of Khali started from a small village called Dhiraina in Himachal Pradesh. Growing up in a financially unsound family along with six siblings was never easy for him. The struggle kept him away from school and he had to break stones as a road worker to earn his bread.
But beneath the struggle, Khali had something in his favour: acromegaly. The disease associated with gigantism gave Khali a big stature and some facial deformities.
The unusual height of Khali was a blessing in disguise for him as he caught the attention of the policemen in Punjab. They managed to land him a job in Punjab Police through sports quota, and just like that, Khali, who never saw school, became a policeman.
Along with his duties in the police force, Khali started giving time for bodybuilding as well. Like every story, his story also had a turning point, and it came when he came across a telecast of World Wrestling Federation.
Khali had his eyes set on WWF in 1998 when the company was in a full blown war with WCW. The likes of Triple H, Steve Austin, Kane and Undertaker were at their prime and Khali, instantly fell in love with the whole idea.
He did not know the complex storylines or the heel-face distinction that forms foundation for the art form. For him, it was just beating up people and he knew that he could do it better than the people he saw on television.
“I thought the fighting was real. I felt I could beat everyone up. I knew this was what I should be doing with my life,” he once said.
The Tough Decision and Getting tagged as 'Murderer’
Now that Khali had found his calling, it was time for him to make a decision, A decision to leave his steady earning job and pursue a distant dream. Khali took the gamble.
He flew to Hayward and started training under Roland Alexander at the All Pro Wrestling Academy. Surviving in the academy was painful. He had to live inside a 10 foot room and used to sleep on his cloths rather than a bed. And worse of all was the language.
While later part of Khali's career saw him perform in sold out arenas across the world, during his initial days, Khali used to wrestle in Supermarkets, basements and School Gymnasiums.
The reputation of Khali took a big blow in 2001 when fellow wrestler Brian Ong died after taking a flapjack from him. Ong had a previous history of concussions, but the trainers still allowed him to wrestle, which in turn resulted in his demise.
A portion of the wrestling community made Khali responsible for the death and he was instantly tagged dangerous to work with.
“I was shaken up. It felt horrible but what could I have done? I wasn’t going to stop wrestling,” Khali recalled during an interview.
WCW, Mexico and Japan came calling for him despite such a reputation. Khali had some solid matches in both the nations, all those, however, not enough to attract the attention of World Wrestling Entertainment and Vince McMahon.
Ironically, Vince McMahon noticed Khali when the giant appeared in Adam Sandler's 'The Longest Yard'. Vince, who is known for loving big men, wasted no time in getting Khali into his roster.
With options like 'The Great Bhima', and the 'The Great Shiva' at his disposal, Khali decided to go with the ring name, 'The Great Khali' due to his love for Hindu Goddess Kali.
The WWE Journey and Wrestling School
Khali had a dream debut when he came in and dismantled the Undertaker. From there, he embarked on a memorable journey that lasted almost a decade. He played different roles, wrestled across the world, and won the WWE World Heavyweight Championship during his stay in the company.
Bollywood and Television in India aided his star power and in 2014, Khali parted ways with WWE after his contract ended.
These days, Khali could be found in the Continental Wrestling Entertainment Academy that he has set up near Jalandhar. The academy helps young wrestlers to learn and craft their skills for the art that made Khali into a universal star.
He also has a profitable liquor store in Houston as well which he runs alongside his wife Harminder.
Although he is not actively wrestling right now, Khali is still a popular figure in the country and the business. Not maybe because of his skills, but because of the struggle that he went through and the fight he fought against it.
The Great Khali, he deserves respect.
