After the fire at the Keshavrao Bhosale Theatre in Kolhapur, the stage of the neighbouring Khasbag Maidan was also charred. Due to this, the Khasbag Wrestling Ground built by Rajarshi Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj was closed for more than a year. This wrestling arena was in a bad condition. But now this arena is going to be started again.
Just as wrestlers need nourishment for wrestling, so does the wrestling arena. The soil of this stadium is being made ready for wrestling by adding nourishing ingredients. The way a wrestler is given a healthy diet, the soil of this legacy stadium also needs to be given nourishment.
MLA Amal Mahadik provided all the materials required for this. About 10 sacks each of lemon, turmeric, oil cans, two bags of kav (pepper), 50 litres of milk and other ingredients were mixed into this soil. Gangavesh Talim wrestler and Kolhapur-based social activist Vijay Salokhe Sardar, and some other activists are working towards the refurbishment of the Khasbag Maidan. Therefore, after a long wait of about a year, wrestling will be enjoyed at the Khasbag ground.
‘Kusti,’ wrestling is a popular sport played in Kolhapur for ages. Some of the Kings were themselves good wrestlers. Almost every week, wrestling matches were arranged here in their era.
That time, Kusti festivals were in an open ground, with preparing temporary ‘Kusti Houda,’ a special platform for wrestling. It was Rajarshi Chhatrapati Shahu Maharaj, being himself a good wrestler, who was thinking of having a permanent stadium for the Kusti festival. When he was on a tour to Europe, he saw the famous stadium ‘Colosseum’ at Rome and decided to build such a kind of masterpiece at Kolhapur.
After returning from the European tour, he constructed the Khasbag Maidan on the lines of the Colosseum of Rome. And the Khasbag Kusti Maidan is Unique in India. Over 60,000 people can enjoy watching the Kusti at the central Houda clearly without any disturbance. Moreover, a separate platform is there for the Royal family on the east side of the Houda.
