“There was a time when Bholu ka Akhara produced pehlwans, now we only see kangris [skinny people] working out on fancy machines here,” Wilayat Ali, an old member of the famous open-air gym at Pakistan Chowk in Karachi, wryly comments about the changes he has seen during his 40 or so years of frequenting this place.

“Pehlwans are a dying breed in Pakistan now. Back in our day we used to do 6,000 sit-ups and 2,000 push-ups in one go for just a pat on the back as encouragement from our seniors but now it’s all about style and glamour and money,” he regrets.

A little effort to go a long way

Except for Sundays, Bholu ka Akhara or Darul Sehat, as it is also known, is open every day from 6.30 to 8.30am and 4 to 10pm. The monthly fee for use of the gym is extremely reasonable at Rs500 and the use of the akhara, the square mud patch for wrestling practice, is free for whoever may be interested.

The pehlwans may be a shadow of their former selves but Bholu ka Akhara lives on

For motivation, posters of bodybuilders line the walls of the gym, though the one who is really motivating the men to lift the rusty weights and dumbbells is missing. Club in charge, Dildar Ahmed laughs. “Yes, we see more members soon after the release of a Salman Khan movie. Everyone here wants triceps and biceps like him,” he says.

One-man ‘Party’

Today is Qasim ‘Party’s’ first day back at the gym after 10 years. The lean fellow with the unusual nickname brings out his mobile phone to share some of his old photos. “This was me,” he beams showing pictures of himself, only with a bodybuilding champion’s physique.

Looking for inspiration

What happened? “I got married, have a loving wife and three beautiful little girls to take care of now. The money I used to spend on my nutritional needs such as eggs, chicken, etc., I spend on my family. Earlier, I was so fit I used to easily lift 80kg but now I may pull a muscle or two while even lifting 10kg,” he smiles and says that his father, Tahir Ali Fida Hussain, was a medal-winning bodybuilder and his uncle a boxer.

Low-tech, high impact

“Now I’m back as my pir rightly advices that no matter how hard one works, one should set aside one hour in the morning and one in the evening for oneself. That’s what I intend to do. Yes, I’m not very well off and food is expensive but hopefully I’ll manage,” he becomes quiet.

Test your mettle in the mud patch

“Food is a major part of fitness and building up your body,” says Sajid Mahmood a nutrition expert at the gym. “There are certain things that you consume before exercise and some things that you eat afterward which contribute to your building muscle. We reject supplements which might also carry steroids. Here we only build bodies the natural way through healthy food and exercise. But exercise alone is no good. And as you exercise, your food intake also increases. Milk, porridge, eggs, fish, chicken, mutton, beef and dried fruit are some of the essentials for wrestlers and bodybuilders but sadly though there is plenty of talent here, the men can’t always afford these things and the government or sports bodies don’t seem interested in patronising us,” he explains.

Rusty but robust

Mohammad Shakeel ‘Commando’, as he is popularly known, is another senior member at the gym and comes here every week day after his duty hours at the post office right across. “I live in Sakhi Hassan but this place is so conveniently located, right in front of my office, that I just can’t resist coming here,” he says.

Meanwhile, Nasir Bholu, the owner of the place, and scion of the famous Bholu family, says even though the pehlwans are long gone, he would keep the gym open for whoever is interested. “This piece of land where the gym is located was a gift to the Bholu family from Liaquat Ali Khan, the first prime minister of Pakistan, after my grandfather won the Rustam-i-Pakistan title soon after Partition in 1948. Its door will remain open for all fitness lovers as training and exercise gives you a healthy mind, and a healthy mind keeps you away from the bad things in life,” he says with firm conviction.

The gym is also known to treat people for various joint and orthopedic ailments. “Yes, even where doctors couldn’t help or have advised surgery, our experts have helped people become as good as new again. Exercise and massage has many benefits and most of our old club members can cure such problems,” he states.

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, August 10th, 2014