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What's the story?
Scott Dargis of NBC Sports recently interviewed "The Game" Triple H to talk about the recent tour of India and NXT's debut on the USA Network. During the interview, they discussed why Triple H defeated Jinder Mahal in his home country.
In case you didn't know...
Jinder Mahal may be of Indian descent and billed from Punjab, India, but in actuality he's Canadian. He was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada in 1986.
Mahal got his start in professional wrestling on the revival of Stampede Wrestling alongside current and past WWE Superstars like Natalya, Tyson Kidd, and Viktor of The Ascension.
The heart of the matter...
To answer the question why Triple H defeated Jinder Mahal in India last week, he simply stated that he is more popular in India than Jinder is. Now before people start to make jokes about Triple H busting out the shovel, there was a lot more to it than simply the 48-year old COO of the WWE burying the up and coming talent.
While the casual fan would assume that the fans of India would cheer Jinder because he's of Indian descent, Triple H says that it's not the case at all. The way the people see and react to things within the WWE is very different.
Many people within the media that Triple H spoke with while in India would tell him that they idolized him when they were kids. One guy even told Triple H that he was suspended from school because he told a kid to "suck it."
Triple H would explain further with the quote below:
"It’s not to say Jinder wasn’t ‘over’ there. He was! You have to understand the market. It’s not like everyone just went, ‘Oh my God he’s Indian! He looks like us so we love him.’ They are a savvy market. They understand that he’s [playing] a bad guy [on television]. Even though he got a massive reaction, he still needs to earn their respect. He’s still growing and still new. You know what I mean?”
Dargis brought up a great point to Triple H on the matter as well:
"Jinder still new in many ways, especially in this role. The audience has to grow with him in order for him to reach that level of stardom you mentioned."
What's next?
Jinder Mahal has a big match coming up this Sunday in Boston, Massachusetts as he tries to regain the WWE Championship from AJ Styles at Clash of Champions.
As for Triple H, it is unknown what is next for his on-screen character, but at this time, he is definitely formulating the plan for the next NXT Takeover in Philadelphia during Royal Rumble weekend on January 27th.
Author's take...
I think that was a great conversation between Triple H and Scott Dargis about Jinder Mahal. Typically at a WWE Live show, the good guys are the ones that win. Just because someone is billed from India isn't going to be a lock that there be "over" when they wrestle in that country.
I think Jinder has done a good job at the top of the card over the past six months, but I think it is almost time for a babyface turn, something Jinder has said in interviews that he would like to do.
