The oldest Akhara in Pune

Kushti is a form of wrestling that was developed in the Mughal Empire, combining Malla-Yuddha with influences from Persian Koshti Pehlavani. This is a photo story on Chinchechi Talim, the oldest Akhara in Pune. (Akhara refers to a place of practicing Kushti, or any form of Indian Martial Art, with facilities of boarding and lodging. In pre-partition days, the Akharas of Maharashtra were closely linked to the ones in Punjab. The term used there was Talim, meaning a place of learning. So, the same was adopted in Maharashtra also.) Chinchechi Talim was founded by Mhaskaji Damodar Pandit in 1773 during the Peshwas' rule in Pune.