lucha libre .................

Lucha Libre ………………..Mystery unrevealed

 Sight of two humans punching at each other was shown on the idiot box . I looked sternly at my pre-school going nephew. He defended my glance by a cherry smile and said ; "you like Lucha Libre"? A click through my brain, "What is that"? It definitely sounded like Greek and Latin .Still, like all the typical elderly Indians; I too boggled to accept my ignorance. In a split of a second I shouted back, "I don’t want you to watch all this violence ". His smile faded and he frowned, the same frown I gave when my Grandpa asked me to stop digging the earth in my backyard. I managed to tackle the situation, thanks to Quality Walls and its chocolate cornetto.

 It was then that I came to the point.”Ok now Kevin, tell me why you like all this hitting and beating games"?

  He looked at me with a twinkle in his eyes and told me,"Ramayana has violence and so does Mahabharatha when i read those stories nobody are bothered .Just when I sit to watch a WWF match all the protestors come with pluck cards.[Yes. True this is a lot because we learn a lot from our present day politicians to react late or and  at the wrong occasion ].We had a chat  lasting more than an hour regarding his so call Lucha Libre.

  It was then I came to know that Lucha Libre is a Mexican art form of wrestling. Its history dates back to the 1930s .The father of Lucha Libre was Don Salvadon Luttercroth .He himself was a "luchadore"[Mexican term used to describe a wrestler].Now let us climb into the ring and explore the world of Lucha Libre from its rules and stars to the cultural influences that underlie its spectacle. Some luchadores take their Lucha Libre identify outside the ring, keeping their mask on when in fresh air. The wrestlers in this game wear a mask on and this symbolises their identity. Since the beginning of time, every society’s mythology has included battles between good and evil that determines the future of mankind. (Had to agree to him) .Lucha Libre too have their heroes and villains on the dice. Popular luchadores who represent Aztec warriors , Christian Saints ,who fight for common man are tecnicos.The villans literally used to spit at the dark side of Mexico by depicting the corrupt politicians , crooked police officers .They are called the rudhos (If Indians had a chance in Lucha Libre we could have made an army of it.)

The rules not similar to American wrestling which is more or less a well scripted drama . Lucha Libre accepts four  basic patterns of winning.

Ø  Pinning the opponent to the mat .

Ø  Knocking him out of the ring

Ø  Performing an illegal move and removing and removing an opponent’s mask.

The basic game is divided into different weight classes :

v  Light weight

v  Heavy weight

v  Welter weight

Luchadores are traditionally more agile and perform more aerial maneuvers than professional wrestlers in the U.S. who more often rely on power and hard strikes to subdue their opponents. The difference in styles is due to the independent evolution of the sport in Mexico beginning in the 1930s and the fact that luchadores in the cruiserweight division (peso semicompleto) are often the most popular wrestlers in Mexican lucha libre. Luchadores execute characteristic high flying attacks by using the wrestling ring's ropes to catapult themselves towards their opponents, using intricate combinations in rapid-fire succession, and applying complex submission holds.