Ambika Charan Guha | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1843 (1843) |
| Died | 1900 (aged 56–57) Kolkata, Bengal,British India |
| Occupation | Wrestler |
| Children | Khetra Charan Guha |
| Parent | Abhay Charan Guha |
Ambika Charan Guha (Bengali:অম্বিকাচরণ গুহ; 1843–1900), popularly known asAmbu babu (Bengali:অম্বুবাবু) orAmbu Guha (Bengali:অম্বু গুহ), was an Indianwrestler who pioneered the growth ofakhara culture inBengal.
Ambika Charan came from a family of wrestlers. His grandfather, Shiv Charan Guha, patronizedPehlwani and is credited with popularizing the sport in Bengal. Ambika Charan was born to Abhay Charan Guha in 1843 in Hogolkuria inKolkata. The locality is near the Masjidbari Street nearHatibagan.
Ambika Charan suffered a serious injury at the age of eight or nine. At the advice of the doctor he began to continue his studies at home. He also continued his physical exercises and took lessons inhorse riding at home. He was trained in Pehlwani by Kalicharan Chaubey ofMathura.[1]
In 1857, at the age of sixteen, Ambika, founded the firstakhara of Bengal, at the advice of his grandfather.[2] Ambika then travelled throughoutBritish India learning different wrestling andweight lifting tricks. He engaged in wrestling bouts with contemporary Indian wrestlers and became victorious in many of them. He came to be known as "Ambu babu" or "Raja babu".
Hisakhara became a pilgrimage to the budding wrestlers of India. Ambika Charan became a Pehlwani trainer and the budding wrestlers of Bengal used to train under him.Swami Vivekananda in his early years, learnedwrestling in Ambu babu'sakhara.[3]
Some of his famous students are listed below.
His son,Khetra Charan Goho, (popularly known as Khetu babu) also became an accomplished wrestler. Khetu babu's nephew,Jatindra Charan Goho, went on to become an accomplished wrestler who became the firstAsian to win the World Light Heavyweight Championship in the United States in 1921.
Theakhara culture subsequently flourished in Bengal and theBengali Hindu elite were drawn into it. Hundreds ofakharas began to proliferate in the nooks and crannies of Bengal, some of which later became the breeding ground of revolutionary nationalist activities.
