Do not be fooled by an elongated smile. Behind this joyful facade is a combat machine.
The first athlete of mixed martial arts born to the Indians to compete in the ultimate combat championship – the largest MMA promotion company in the world, with up to 11 different weight categories – was Bharat “daring” Khandare who made his UFC debut in 2017. Many others followed his steps in the years, but it was not until June 2024 that UFC. This distinction is held by an MMA star, the first exhibition to martial arts was via Jackie Chan films in his village in Uttar Pradesh.
From Boudhana to octagon: Puja Tomar’s journey
When Puja Tomar, 31, won a victory for the fractional decision against Rayanne Dos Santos of Brazil in the 52 kg division last year in her UFC debut, but she not only made the history of the UFC, she also engraved the name of the country in MMA history books. But perhaps more than anything else, it was the validation that came with this victory, that the fighter with a Southpaw position was waiting for his whole life.
“It was like a dream come true for me. All the people there, foreigners and the media there-they were all very excited for me and spoke of the way a girl of India is about to play on such a big scene. It was an incredible moment for me,” said in an exclusive interview with his training camp in Bali.
Jackie Chan and YouTube: How MMA found Puja
What is really incredible is the story of Puja’s life, which started in the village of Budhana in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh. Growing up, the only thing Puja achieved very quickly is that she might always be treated very differently, by most people, because of her sex. It is an awareness that millions of young women in our country, who always find themselves chained, the searious customs dictated by patriarchy. For Puja, what was clear from an early age is that she had to try to find a way to get out of this life, which was governed by regressive dogmas. And it was this burning desire that fueled her passion for martial arts.
“Since when I was very young, I saw that the boys were better treated and gave more importance in our village. I always felt bad about it and I wondered -“Why am I a girl?” I should also have been a boy. ” But after that, when I started watching Jackie Chan’s films, I was presented to the martial arts. The athlete nicknamed “the cyclone,” said.
Puja’s journey to become “cyclone” was not something that happened overnight, of course. At this stage of her life, all that Puja knew, it was that she found martial arts as something new and exciting and something that she could be continued. But how? Fortunately, although many customs and traditions of the Old World have not yet changed in our country, two steps forward were the incredible range of the Internet and smartphones. Whatever the small size of a village or Tehsil, you will find people in India with both. For Puja, it was a boon, just like the arrival of a certain teacher in his school.
“I have never had an exhibition to the struggle or anything. I would watch youtube videos and learn the technique of kicks and punches from there. Then we had a teacher who came to our school and taught karate to girls as a form of self -defense. And slowly, I realized that the assault I had in me to want to beat boys with a first martial arts, “said Puja in an exclusive interaction.
Puja now had a plan. She knew that martial arts could potentially help her change her life. She refused to accept that her fate was what was dictated by the men of her village. But what could be the next step?
After being exposed to karate in his school, he was natural that Puja continues to practice this form of martial arts. But she quickly realized that karate was not for her. It was too limiting, too restrictive. Puja was looking for something through which she could express themselves. It was not only an outlet for her attack and her repressed frustration that she was looking for, she needed something that could well and really comfort and heal her.
“When I started learning karate at school, there were some inter-school events in which I participated. I struck someone very hard in one of the events, but instead of being rented, I was disqualified from the event. I was told -“You can’t hit someone like that.” It was then that I asked them if there is sport where I can kick and hit others, because I did not like karate restrictions.
Wushu – It literally means “martial art” or “martial / military technique” in Mandarin. Puja was graduated in the next phase of her martial arts journey and it was the golden phase, because she had found her call. Puja can only have 4 feet and 9 inches high, but she reached the stars, grabbing this opportunity with both hands. She became a Wushhu’s national champion in fivefold. She also represented India at the Wushu 2015 World Championships in Jakarta, Indonesia.
But life had changed again for Puja, two years before leaving for these world championships. In 2013, the girl who once wanted to beat the boys in her village, made her debut at MMA in the Super Fight League – one of the first promotion companies of the MMA of the Indian subcontinent, who had the actor Sanjay Dutt as one of its founders. Puja, hungry for success and itching to prove itself, managed to make the mark there, recording two victories with direct elimination.
The MMA athlete, who weighs 52 kg, knew that she had to continue to evolve, growing, in transition. And in 2017, she joined a championship – a multinational combat sports promotion company founded in July 2011 by the entrepreneur and the Martial Thai artist, Chatri Sityodtong, who believes that martial arts are the “cultural treasure” of Asia.
It was a step forward seriously for Puja, because she had to go aside with Tiffany “No Chill” Teo de Singapore, who has 11 victories in MMA and only 2 losses in the female fly weight division and the Fairtex stamp of Thailand, a champion of Muay-Thai Kickboxer, who is the world champion of MMA of MUAy-Thai. She was also the world champion Muay-Thai and the world kickboxing champion in a championship.
But despite the confrontation of some of the most difficult adversaries that the platform could launch, Puja remained concentrated and in 2019, she managed to ensure a victory for the shared decision against Priscilla Hertati Lumban Gaol – an MMA Indonesian athlete who won a bronze medal at the Wushu 2013 world championships and also participated in the 2014 Asian Games.
Puja, who won 9 victories in 12 professional fights so far, had already gone a long way since he was afraid of the men of his village in Uttar Pradesh, as a child, while secretly wishing a different life. But the trip was far from over. His next judgment was The Matrix Fight Night – Another promotion company of the Indian MMA – which was founded in Mumbai in 2019 by actor Tiger Shroff, his mother Ayesha Shroff and the sister Krishna Shroff. It is a company, in March 2024, welcomed 15 nights of premium combat. It is also the company to which another Indian athlete of the UFC, ASHUL Jubli, was associated. In MFN, Puja went to a winning machine. A series of victories resulted in the MFN Women’s Strawweight Championship at the MFN 10 in November 2022.
Historical start of the UFC for Puja
And then in June 2024 came the largest turning point in his career – a start of the UFC. Years of hard work, training and complete and total devotion to his art had finally borne fruit. And when these beginnings became historical, Puja becoming the first athlete born in India to win a UFC fight, Puja knew that she had been able to live her dream. This little girl from Muzaffarnagar, who went to bed every night dreaming of punching and kicking, wanting to kill opponents like Jackie Chan made in the films she watched, lived her dream.
It was a dream that saw many obstacles, but the only unshakable support through everything was Puja’s mother, who, according to UFC.com, always had three words for her daughter – “Puja, just fighting”.
“Before even joining the UFC, there were several challenges I had to face in the world of martial arts. The biggest challenge was family support. Apart from my mother, no one else has supported my dream. Most people, including my male parents, estimated that I had to seek government work via my Wushu experience and not do something where injuries are a part and a career. (Why are you determined to break the members?) – I had to hear all these things.
This voice in his head was not false. Puja, who has so far won six victories with direct elimination in her professional career, is not only a brilliant example of what is possible if a young woman refuses to play according to the regressive rules of society, choosing to forge her own path instead, but also a huge inspiration for young girls, who dream of finding their niche of martial arts in one of the most difficult contact sports.
Puja’s dream may have come true, but she hasn’t stopped dreaming. One of his greatest hopes is now to see MMA at the Olympic Games.
“It will be a great success. I think the MMA should certainly be part of the Olympic program, because it is an incredible sport. I have in fact heard rumors that there could be a possibility that sport be added as Olympic sport,” Puja told Firstpost.
One of the largest obstacles confronted with MMA, with regard to potential inclusion in the Olympic program, is the absence of a unified directing body, apart from obvious concerns such as serious physical injuries and prolonged recovery time between fighting. But this voice in Puja’s head will also keep this dream of his alive. This voice that has always told him to – “wait and hope”.
