Ambika Charan Guha
Ambika Charan Guha | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1843 |
| Died | 1900 Kolkata, Bengal,British India |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Occupation | Wrestler |
| Children | Khetra Charan Guha |
| Parent | Abhay Charan Guha |
Ambika Charan Guha(Bengali:অম্বিকাচরণ গুহ;1843–1900), popularly known asAmbu babu(Bengali:অম্বুবাবু) orAmbu Guha(Bengali:অম্বু গুহ), was an Indianwrestlerwho pioneered the growth ofakharaculture inBengal.
Early life
[edit]Ambika Charan came from a family of wrestlers. His grandfather, Shiv Charan Guha, patronizedPehlwaniand is credited with popularizing the sport in Bengal. Ambika Charan was born to Abhay Charan Guha in 1843 in Hogolkuria inKolkata.The locality is near the Masjidbari Street nearHatibagan.
Ambika Charan suffered a serious injury at the age of eight or nine. At the advice of the doctor he began to continue his studies at home. He also continued his physical exercises and took lessons inhorse ridingat home. He was trained in Pehlwani by Kalicharan Chaubey ofMathura.[1]
Career
[edit]In 1857, at the age of sixteen, Ambika, founded the firstakharaof Bengal, at the advice of his grandfather.[2]Ambika then travelled throughoutBritish Indialearning different wrestling andweight liftingtricks. He engaged in wrestling bouts with contemporary Indian wrestlers and became victorious in many of them. He came to be known as "Ambu babu" or "Raja babu".
Hisakharabecame a pilgrimage to the budding wrestlers of India. Ambika Charan became a Pehlwani trainer and the budding wrestlers of Bengal used to train under him.Swami Vivekanandain his early years, learnedwrestlingin Ambu babu'sakhara.[3]
Some of his famous students are listed below.
- Khetra Charan Guha or Khetu babu
- Jatindra Charan Guho
- Swami Vivekananda
- Swami Brahmananda
- Jatindranath Mukherjeeor Bagha Jatin
- Phanindra Krishna Gupta
Legacy
[edit]His son,Khetra Charan Goho,(popularly known as Khetu babu) also became an accomplished wrestler. Khetu babu's nephew,Jatindra Charan Goho,went on to become an accomplished wrestler who became the firstAsianto win the World Light Heavyweight Championship in the United States in 1921.
Theakharaculture subsequently flourished in Bengal and theBengali Hinduelite were drawn into it. Hundreds ofakharasbegan to proliferate in the nooks and crannies of Bengal, some of which later became the breeding ground of revolutionary nationalist activities.
Notes
[edit]- ^Tadié, Alexis; Mangan, J. A.; Chaudhuri, Supriya (8 April 2016).Sport, Literature, Society: Cultural Historical Studies.Routledge.ISBN9781134920242.
- ^"Wrestling History | Indian Pro Wrestling Base".20 March 2015.Retrieved30 July2019.
- ^Rajagopal Chattopadhyaya (1999).Swami Vivekananda in India: A Corrective Biography.Motilal Banarsidass. p. 22.ISBN8120815866.
