Pro Wrestling sensation Baliyan Akki discusses Dangal Ke Soorma, Chris Masters, DDT & More (Exclusive)

Meet one of the eminent Dangal Ke Soorma Team Captains!
Meet one of the eminent Dangal Ke Soorma Team Captains!

Baliyan Akki is probably the third biggest export in the pro wrestling world from India, after The Great Khali and Mahabali Shera. I am, of course, not talking about others like Jinder Mahal and Sunil and Samir Singh, who have Indian roots but are native to Canada.

Much like his in-ring persona, Baliyan Akki exudes flamboyance in whatever he chooses to do. Realizing that his pro wrestling dreams were too big to be confined within India, this is a man who decided to traverse the world, most notably Japan where he's performed with promotions like Gatoh Move Pro Wrestling and DDT.

February marked a homecoming for the maestro when he returned to India for Dangal Ke Soorma, a show that pits 21 Indian pro wrestlers against International Superstars. Akki is one of the two team captains, and perhaps the most prominently featured wrestler in the show.

A good friend of mine and of Sportskeeda, it's always a pleasure to chat with this legend in the making. He's never been more excited as he speaks about how big Indian pro wrestling is poised to be. Akki exclaims with utmost enthusiasm about Dangal Ke Soorma:

It feels like the day I got my first bicycle. It felt like tomorrow would never come, back then. But I'm so excited. So very excited.

Why should Indian fans watch Dangal Ke Soorma on DSPORT? Akki tells us why:

Let's say you are a football fan. And you finally have a home team to cheer for. How excited would you be? You finally have someone to root for. I finally have a home!

Akki has plied his craft around the world and competed with some of the best. He believes in the product and says that the best thing about Indian fans is how rowdy they can be. Comparatively, the Japanese contingent is much harder to please, while the English audience loves its singalong chants. Akki implores the following of the Indian fans:

I just want people to watch. Judge us. Judge us at any standard you'd judge anybody else. Or any show.

The sight of Akki entering the arena like a rockstar, with his hair flowing behind him and with pyro going off all around him is certainly one of the highlights of the show. At an age, when even WWE does not invest in pyro except for the bigger events, WIN has really gone all out. I ask him about his flamboyant entrance:

That was the first time I had pyro. That was the first time I entered with that music. The music was new. The setting was new. My character was nice. So, when you see the pyro for the first time with my face lighting up, that was actually my reaction!

Most of the first season sees Akki facing off against Dr. Smash. According to Akki, Smash is one of the most talented superstars in the roster and so is Zoro, two men he really admires. When asked about individuals he wants to see in Season 2, Akki says that the possibilities are truly limitless thanks to DSPORT. Even names like Okada and Tanahashi may be possible, as they also broadcast NJPW across India!

Dangal Ke Soorma also had a legitimate industry icon in Chris Adonis, formerly known as Chris Masters. Akki had a great time meeting the man, and sharing the locker room with him:

Meeting Chris was a very different experience than I'd imagined. He's a legit superstar and before I met him, I had no idea what he'd be like. He was very chill. He was down to earth. Gave advice to us. You know the Master Lock is a very famous thing in India. Everyone under 30 knows that. If he can give us the eyes we need right now, we hope from Season 2, we wouldn't need him as a special attraction but as a featured performer.

I asked Akki about his time in Japan, especially wrestling for DDT. Akki says his time in DDT, Japan's third-biggest wrestling promotion was exactly what we'd imagine it to be. He wrestled mainly in the sub-brands of DDT, instead of the main one:

My favorite opponent is Masahiro Takanashi, who's not very well known as he's a traditional wrestler and DDT is not really known for traditional wrestling as such. He's very popular in Japan. But outside of Japan, not so much. But DDT gets the best talent from Mexico, and the US and the UK. So, I got to wrestle and I got to meet those guys. Sammy Guevara was in DDT before he signed with AEW.

Baliyan Akki will be leading his team to gold and glory when Dangal Ke Soorma hits your TV screens on August 24.

Meet the man who called CM Punk the softest man alive HERE