Mumbai teen champion is breaking barriers as a rising teen wrestler

If the teenage years are meant to raise some hell, 17-year-old Omprakash Pandey is a befitting exemplum. A resident of Vikhroli in Mumbai, Om is smashing all barriers to emerge as a wrestler. What began as a dream of a fifth grader is now a movement to solidify his savage craft and empower the young sports enthusiasts from Vikhroli Park Site.

At an age when peers are emulating the latest trends of Instagram, young Om is setting precedence to chase one's passion fiercely. The onset of his wrestling journey began in 2015 at BMC School in Mumbai where he enrolled for the district-level competition. At first, Om was met with defeats and failure had been achieved. He thought to himself "What happens next?"

The only place to go from failure is to win. That is the beauty of it and Om could envision this early on. With a never-back-down attitude and handy lessons up his sleeves, Om began to sharpen his moves in the wrestling ring. What followed was foreseen. His skills and dedication won him the district championship followed by his selection at the state level to represent Mumbai at three tournaments in Pune and Nasik, in 2017 and 2019 respectively.

Youth 20 at G20

Currently pursuing B.A. from Ramniranjan Jhunjhunwala College in Ghatkopar, Om has expanded his horizons beyond studies and sports. He has been nominated as a Child Champion and volunteer with Bal Raksha Bharat (Save the Children), the organisation that is hosting an important segment of G20 - The Y20 in India.

Y20 or Youth 20 is a significant component of G20 which focuses on fostering youth engagement and empowerment among the marginalized sections of society. It provides a platform for the youth to discuss and express their concerns on various issues and present remedies to address them as well. At the Y20 Chaupal hosted in Mumbai, Om spearheaded the responsibility of assisting and guiding adolescent boys and girls.

"As part of Y20, I have been visiting various chawls in the slums of Vikhroli for the past 2 years. I came across young people who dream to follow their passion for sports. However, due to a lack of proper training routines and amenities, these young sports enthusiasts are struggling. A week ago, I met a 12-year-old Pooja who wishes to become a boxer but has no funds to buy gloves and adequate gear needed to develop her practice," Om told Midday Online.

Omprakash presenting his recommendations at Y20 Chaupal conducted in Mumbai by Save the Children. Image Courtesy: Save the Children

‘I am determined to pass on what I have learned'

Having observed these inefficiencies, Om was taken back to his yesteryears of struggle. This was the watershed moment that determined his zeal to uplift the youth in his area. Using his sports knowledge and expertise, he began tutoring them with lessons and voluntary coaching on wrestling. Additionally, he has also competed in WASHU at the national level in 2022, representing Maharashtra in a tournament held in Punjab.

Hence, not just wrestling, but Omprakash has been guiding teen sportspersons over WASHU as well as boxing techniques without charging a penny. Furthering his volunteer work, he sits with them to chalk out meal plans suitable for this savage discipline of sports. Harking back to the bygone years, he echoes "I don't want these kids to go through what I did. I made many mistakes, failed a lot and dealt with disappointments. But the stillness that came from those sleepless nights invoked new knowledge in me. I am determined to pass on what I have learned."

With this grit and passion, Om goes beyond limits to help the youth find their purpose and direction. He wishes that young enthusiasts do not face what he faced while learning to wrestle. In collaboration with "Save The Children", he works actively to provide them with books and reading material needed to develop their practice. To spark curiosity in young minds, he often conducts workshops where he educates them about sports trivia and career guidance.

Challenges of pursuing wrestling in Mumbai slums

The needs of a slum child pursuing wrestling are homogenous. "We do not have good training centers in Vikhroli. To attain good sports training, we have to travel long distances all across the city. That is where the problem arises. With a lack of funds in our pockets, many children are pushed to earn daily wages and give up the practice."

"Everything boils down to money. Working at a young age can get addictive. Once the cash inflow is in place, children do not give a second thought to learning a new discipline," states Om with a crease on his forehead. Yet some of them manage to build a balance between working and getting trained. Then comes the next set of problems.

As a sportsperson, Om requires a balanced diet that includes high portions of proteins and fats. If the diet is not proper, a sportsperson cannot build a suitable body needed to play. However, this type of diet comes at a cost that is unaffordable for Om and he has to settle with what he gets. Banana is his cheap alternative to building stamina. To address the woes, he shares that a scholarship program can solve his problems. "I can perform far superior if not for the financial issues."

Reflecting on the third issue, he shares that there are not enough sports teachers in his school. "There's a rising sportsperson in every batch who needs grooming. India ki mitti itni mazboot hai k sahi training milne par hum bohot aagey ja saktey hain," he says with passion. "Sports should be a legitimate subject in schools which is missing from the curriculum."

"Studying sports in school can prevent many injuries by teaching the right form. Not only this, it can open our minds to the kinds of jobs available for sportspersons in the Indian market. Yes, Google has answers to such queries but it is scattered and not uniform. A wrestler should know the dimensions of a wrestling ground say: 9m diameter and a 1.5m border. Prior knowledge of these basics can be beneficial for aspiring wrestlers." However, with missing sports literature, many young people rank far behind their international peers in wrestling.

But, Om is stimulated by his vision and will not stop at any cost. He senses that children around him are afflicted with the same issues and therefore, he provides free-of-cost training. Despite the problems he has faced, he has managed to win state and national championships. He is packed with the right form and technique and wishes to take his craft further. "I aspire to represent India on the international front."

Omprakash with Child Champions at Y20 Chaupal. Image Courtesy: Save the Children

Empowering the youth of Vikhroli

At 17, nothing is impossible for Om anymore. He is able to see through what the children of Vikhroli are facing and how it can be tackled. Through Y20 Chaupals, he identified that the youth needs to be updated with relevant skills to be market ready. For instance, "if a child wants to make a career in sports but lacks support, by default she has to pick up the books. But with minimal interest, she cannot grasp enough and scores less on the mark sheet. That is how so many end up jobless and dissatisfied" informs Om.

Such children need to be given customised education. Along with bookish knowledge, they need to be tutored in their areas of interest right from 7th or 8th grade opines Om. Be it sports, singing or veterinary studies, teachers from diverse backgrounds should be appointed to enhance young minds with knowledge of practical skills along with school-based education.

After doing rounds of Vikhroli slums, Om learnt that earning wages is a necessity. Therefore, not all of them are capable of investing their time and money in attaining education beyond 12th standard. He shares that coding is a highly demanded skill in the tech sector. However, children have no access to learning coding before the 12th standard, as its formal education is offered only after opting for computer science in college.

To this chllaenge, he suggests that teachers should be appointed to impart knowledge on coding right in the schooling years. "A child should be given direction and guidance in a field that interests him. Hence, education needs to be tailor-made as per individual aspirations" remarks Om.

Contextual growth plan for India's youth

A total of 6 Y20 Chaupals were conducted across India, including Mumbai informs Pranab Kumar Chanda, Head - Child Poverty at Save the Children (Bal Raksha Bharat). Other states included Delhi, 2 Chaupals in Bihar, Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal. These Chaupals are a congregation meant to bring youth voices to the fore.

Pranab Kumar Chanda, Head - Child Poverty at Save the Children

The discourse is shaped around 5 key areas which include:

1. Future of Work - Industry 4.0, Innovation and 21st Century Skills among youth
2. Peacebuilding and Reconciliation: Ushering in an Era of No War
3. Climate Change and Disaster Risk Reduction: Making Sustainability a Way of Life
4. Shared Future: Youth in Democracy and Governance
5. Health, Wellbeing and Sports: Agenda for Youth

The area chosen by Bal Raksha Bharat is a pragmatic one. Emphasizing the importance of an innovative and adaptive mindset, they choose ‘Future of Work' to induce employability among the marginalised youth. With 65 per cent youth in India, the young demographics will play an important role in shaping the future of work. "A huge chunk of this population is devoid of educational facilities and opportunities. We wish to bridge this socio-economic digital gap and help the youth achieve what they set out to" shared Chanda.

Generic youth development is not going to help marginalised children. It has to be contextual, customised as per the needs of the youth who are staying in remote areas like slums, streets and even forests. They are deprived of education centers and lack digital access. Additionally, local transport becomes a huge issue as some children travel for 20 kilometers to reach schools. This leads to a mounting opportunity cost of getting educated in deprived areas.

To bridge this gap and find solutions, around 300+ young children participated in the Y20 Chaupals. The objective of this collaboration is to highlight the needs and challenges faced by diverse and remote youth and emphasize the investment in 21st-century skills. The platform saw a rigorous discussion of concerns and challenges from diverse backgrounds. In response to this, various solutions were developed.

Some of the key recommendations made by youth include:

1. Improving the access to training centers
2. Scholarship programs for skill building and overcoming mobility costs
3. Innovative outreach campaigns for training centers
4. Designing career pathways to combine market demand, individual aspirations and cultural sensitivity
5. Easing down the stringent entry-level criteria for National Skill Building Quality Framework
6. Inducing 21st-century skills to help the youth adapt to the changing scenario
7. Social security and minimum wage support in terms of employment
8. Protection against exploitation at workplace

Just like Om, each child is born with a purpose but not all of them are equipped with the right tools to actuate it. They require a personalized approach and a comprehensive action plan to identify strengths, build on their needs and achieve their goals.

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