From Mallapurāṇa to The Science of Wrestling. Volume I : Changing Facets of Indian Wrestling Manuals.

This article examines the evolution of Indian wrestling manuals by comparing the early modern Mallapurāṇa (circa 1674–75) and the early twentieth-century manual The Science of Wrestling: Volume I (1927) by Sir Gangadhar-Rao Ganesh Patwardhan. The Mallapurāṇa, a Sanskrit text linked to the Jyeṣṭhīmalla caste of wrestlers, integrates mythological narratives to reconcile caste identity with the profession of wrestling, reflecting early modern caste mobility and martial culture. In contrast, Patwardhan's manual, richly illustrated with photographs, embodies the colonial-era Indian physical culture movement, blending indigenous wrestling traditions with Western pedagogical methods and nationalist rhetoric to promote wrestling as a means of physical and national regeneration. The shift from textual, caste-based manuals to visually oriented, mass-produced instructional books illustrates broader socio-cultural transformations under colonialism, including the rise of print culture, photography, and nationalist physical culture discourses.