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Veteran Indian all-rounder Manjeet Chhillar recently appeared on Pro Kabaddi's Instagram series Beyond The Mat Season - II, where he spoke extensively about his friendship with Ajay Thakur. The former Bengaluru Bulls star mentioned that Ajay was not just a friend, but almost like a younger brother to him.
Ajay Thakur and Manjeet Chhillar have been very close friends off the mat. Co-incidentally, they have played a majority of their PKL matches together.
Manjeet was Ajay's captain at Bengaluru Bulls in the first few seasons, while in season seven, Chhillar played under Thakur's captaincy at the Tamil Thalaivas. Both played together for the Puneri Paltan in season three and four.
Manjeet Chhillar praises Ajay Thakur and all other kabaddi players
During the live Instagram chat, one of the fans asked Manjeet Chhillar to speak about his friendship with Ajay Thakur. The 2016 Kabaddi World Cup winner answered:
"He is not just a friend, but like a younger brother to me. He is very good-natured, and so is his family. Whenever I go to Himachal Pradesh, I make sure to visit his place, whether he is home or not. I make sure to meet everyone in his family."
Manjeet Chhillar then mentioned that all the Indian kabaddi players had high respect for each other. Although they were rivals on the mat during the PKL matches, they stayed like brothers off it.
"The thing is, all kabaddi players have a lot of respect for each other. It's different on the mat, but off the mat, we are a close-knit unit. There's not a single player who doesn't talk to someone else. We all help each other when needed. For example, I tell Ajay Thakur, I have some work in Himachal Pradesh, he will drop his own work for mine. And I would do the same for him. This is the kind of respect all kabaddi players have for each other," Manjeet Chhillar added.
The eighth season of the Pro Kabaddi League will likely happen next year. It will be interesting to see if Ajay Thakur and Manjeet Chhillar can play together again in PKL 8.
