Mumbai: Boxing legend Mike Tyson to scout for MMA stars in Dharavi

Mike Tyson

When we spot Shubham Kunchikorve, in a gully in Dharavi on Saturday afternoon, and ask him what sports he participates in, the 13-year-old, says, "I go to a municipal school where we are being taught karate. The classes are held once a week on Mondays." He says he enjoys the weekly sessions, and if given the opportunity, would like to train and "develop the skills further".

His dream just might manifest. Born in the slums of Brooklyn, New York, Mike Tyson, the world's most famous boxer after Muhammad Ali, will be down in Mumbai next week. And, while it's known that he will launch the newly formed Kumite 1 League, a global Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) league, through a fight night on September 29, what young Shubham will be happy to know is that Tyson will also be scouting for talent in Dharavi.

Tyson, the league's organisers have told mid-day, will visit Dharavi to meet young talent. After this, the organisers will start a talent hunt. The league's promoters say that the hunt will be done at the grassroots level with the aim of creating opportunities for unsung heroes from various parts of the country.

Shubham Kunchikorve, 13, and a group of children in Dharavi say they are not exposed to most sports, barring karate that schools offer. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar

The promoters are looking to engage an NGO that has been working in Dharavi for a while. On September 27, Tyson is expected to present primary funds to the NGO (which hasn't been finalised yet) towards this cause. A team of experts from the MMA league will then collaborate with the NGO and hunt for talent by conducting local competitions or just physical assessment of the children. Those selected will be groomed into MMA fighters who will then represent India on the world map.

It will be a long term plan of nurturing the children to develop their mixed martial arts training and the hunt will be taken around the entire country where not just the big cities but even the smaller parts of the country will be tapped. The promoter of Kumite 1 League and the man behind Tyson's first-ever India visit, Mohamedali Budhwani says, "Tyson has been eager to create opportunities for underprivileged children especially if they show talent for combat sports.

Like other kids in Dharavi, Arkram Shaikh is learning karate at school. It might be the base on which India's next big MMA fighter may build their talent. Pic/Pradeep Dhivar

He wants to see children who don't have as many opportunities as others, grow and make a mark. He has travelled the world and there are so many talented people everywhere waiting for a little opportunity. India is such a vast country and if one can create scope for children and young people, they will blossom. He will be going to Dharavi to lay the foundation of this oath that Kumite 1 league has taken of commitment to the grass root level talent hunt."

Budhwani adds, "The fight night is just the beginning. In fact, the Dharavi visit is the bigger aspect of the league as it will mark the start of our talent hunt and in a way help us renew our vow to put India on the global MMA map. Tyson has extended his support purely on the basis of this commitment and we will leave no stone unturned to fulfill it."

But, not all the kids here seem to know what MMA even is. Nitesh Mahesh Kunchikorve, 13, is a kabaddi player. "I get coaching in kabaddi in school but apart from that there is no ground here to practice any other sport activity. If given a chance, I'd love to get coaching in kabaddi, but I have no interest in karate or boxing." And, Arkram Shaikh, who throws in quite a cute punch, has the school karate classes to thank. The six-year-old says, "I don't play much of outdoor sports but they have started teaching us karate at school. I don't yet know boxing."

MMA includes
Boxing, kickboxing, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, judo, karate, wrestling, taekwondo, wushu, capoeira

MMA's backstory
MMA's roots can be traced back to ancient Greece, say some. A sport called pankration involved grappling and striking skills similar to those found in modern MMA. The first documented use of the term Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) was in a 1993 review of UFC 1 by television critic Howard Rosenberg

In NY's Dharavi
Mike Tyson was raised by a single mother in the slums of Brooklyn in the 1960s. In previous interviews, he has spoken of the hardships of living in poverty, the "awful living conditions and being surrounded by peer pressure". By the time he was ten, he had already developed a reputation as someone you didn't want to tangle with, and he was skipping school, drinking, smoking, and robbing folks with his friends. After numerous arrests Tyson was sent to a New York reform school for troubled juveniles. It was there that a former boxer, and then counsellor and athletic coach, named Bobby Stewart took an interest in him and taught him how to box.

What is MMA?
Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), is a combat sport in which two competitors attempt to achieve dominance over one another by utilising three general tactics: striking, finishing holds, and control. The rules allow the combatants to use a variety of martial arts techniques including punches, kicks, joint-locks, chokes, takedowns and throws.

What Dharavi NGOs say
Dr Rama Shyam, programme director, Empowerment, Health & Sexuality of Adolescents (EHSAS) of SNEHA, a non-profit that works towards women and child care in Dharavi, says, "Sports is an essential part of growth of children, it keeps them mentally and physically fit. While we do some informal work in this area, there are other NGOs too who have specifically been working with the children here in the field of sports. If there is a special programme developed to identify and nurture talent within Dharavi, it will be a great initiative."

Matthew Spacie, founder Magic Bus, an NGO that has been working with the children in Dharavi for over 19 years, says lack of space has been a hurdle for them. Magic Bus, which uses sports as a tool to help the kids develop a better future, has a success story in Gulafsha Ansari, who represented Magic Bus at the 2010 FIFA Football For Hope event.

Spacie says, "The biggest issue that we found after working in Dharavi for several years is lack of space. There is absolutely no space available and if it was there, we could have easily done much more work than what we already have. Further, we use various games while helping children learn new things. While a specific programme developed to hunt talent and then nurture them, sounds like a very good idea, at the same time, it is also important to look at the holistic development of the youth instead of just picking handful of children and nurturing only them."

Also Read: Former Heavyweight Boxing No. 1 Mike Tyson To Visit Mumbai This Month

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