Focus On Training Rather Than Results, If You Are Honest To Yourself, The Outcome Will Be Remarkable.
The Business Daily got the opportunity to interact with Mr. Angkim Kashyap Sarmah, the first and only instructor of KABOSI ( Self-protection System) and Animal Flow from North-East India, Self-Defence Expert, DASTBI MMA, Kyokushin Karate & Fitness and so as Miss Indrani Tapati, the Co-founder and Director of Dastbi MMA, Founder of Versus Championship at Guwahati.
The two have an exceptional inspiring story for the youth to head forward to their struggles and achieve. We are so sure that their story would inspire today’s youth to achieve their dream in spite of many dejection.
How did u get into this field?
Mr. Angkim- “I was into this from the early days of my schooling. From the last 22 years I’m into this.”
Miss Indrani- “For the last 6 years I’m into MMA. The Dastbi MMA started in the year of 2017.”
What were the struggles that you had to face?
Mr. Angkim- “As an athlete here we don’t get the right platform, the right kind of platform, right kind of training or a right kind of guidance to go into the field where we want to go. The parents should understand that every child is different and they can excel in their own field.”
Who supported you the most?
Miss Indrani- “ I never got any financial help from anyone but as MMA was my dream, I struggle hard to achieve my dream.”
Mr. Angkim- “ I neither got any financial help nor any kind of support from anyone. My dad always wanted me to go for government job or any private job from a reputed company, even when I was working in a bank under my parent’s pressure,it drew me to depression. Since my childhood days I was good at sports so I knew what will suit me the best and hence today I’m here and even though I’m struggling still but I’m fully satisfied and happy.”
Also they said- “We have coaches and mentors, who supported us a lot and today whatever we are, it’s for them. We are and will always be grateful and thankful for their immense support towards us.”
Any challenges that you had to face during the lockdown period?
Mr. Angkim- “(In business)Before the pandemic The Dastbi MMA was slowly taking its pace but after the lockdown started everything went upside down. People are not sending their children here, they are scared.
What inspired you to get into this field?
Miss Indrani- “I always wanted to learn self defence mechanisms but after getting into this field I realized that there are many more things or could say scopes to learn about and moreover there were a very few female fighters back then and as I wanted to represent India so this could be something to achieve my dream and of course to say my coach helped me, motivated me to run towards it.”
Who is your biggest inspiration?
Miss Indrani- “My mother is my greatest inspiration. Even I changed my name from Miss Indrani Chakraborty to Miss Indrani Tapati. She always wanted me to make my own individual identity. She helped me a lot to come into this field so that I not only help myself but also others who are in need.”
Mr. Angkim- “Since my childhood, I never got appreciated for my studies but yes whenever I was into sports people used to appreciate me and that fuelled me up. I feel everybody has their own talents in their respective fields. I knew I was good in sports and therefore today I’m here at this place. I was my own inspiration and I struggled a lot to reach this place. We started from zero and today we have our own academy where we teach many students the real life battle.”
What has MMA taught you?
Mr. Angkim- “MMA helped us in our overall development.”
Miss Indrani- “Martial arts is all about discipline and as MMA is a form of it, we not only learn how to fight but also develop as a person.”
“MMA is in our blood and it has taught us how to survive even in the hardest times of the life and we could survive the pain because of the family that we have got from Dastbi MMA. This is our family.”
What is the best moment in your MMA career so far?
Mr. Angkim- “When you see your students knocking out in 12 seconds or 13 seconds. That’s the best feeling.”
How does the victory feel when your opponent is injured?
Mr. Angkim- “It feels like, yes I have struggled hard and I did it. But once I’m out of the ring, the humanity comes up because it’s not only about fight but also about respect. I need to look after him because it’s all about respect a player keeps for each other. They are also excellent athletes because if they were not then they wouldn’t have come up to the ring but at the end the winner takes it all which doesn’t mean the ego should take over the humanity.”
Being a Martial arts practitioner any message you would like to share for the safety of girls?
Miss Indrani- “ I would like to say to the girls out there that they should not take the self defence as an option rather they should add it as a basic need in their life. The girls need not to be always dependent on the boys everytime. They can also fight for their own choices.”
How far can North East boys reach into the field of martial arts?
Mr. Angkim- “They need good guidance, a good platform, a good training to reach into here. The north-eastern boys specially need such good training as they are the best players known to be around India, just they need a little good guidance and path to follow. So as the Dastbi MMA is sponsoring such good athletes to showcase their talents in the national or international events. In this relevance The Dastbi MMA has also organised Versus Championship for helping the young athletes to showcase their talents.”
By Swarnali Chakraborty and Aishwarya Choudhury
