Famous for its wrestlers, the village of Asola-Fatehpur Beri is now making a name for itself supplying doormen to the Indian capital's upmarket bars and clubs. Life as a bouncer in the city could not be more different to the village, as one of the men told BBC News.
Self-study activity:
Watch the video and answer the questions below. The activity is suitable for Intermediate 2 students.
1 How old is Vijay Tanwar?
2 Where's Asola-Fatehpur Ber?
3 Why didn't Vijay Tanwar become an Olympian?
4 What does the diet he follows have?
5 What food and drink has he never tried in his life?
6 What does Vija's wife never do?
7 What kind of clients do they have a great difficulty with?
8 What's Vijay's dream?
My name’s Vijay Tanwar. (1) I am 39 and I live in Asola-Fatehpur Beri (2) on the outskirts of Delhi. This village is famous for its wrestlers. Wrestling runs in our blood. I wanted to be an Olympian but (3) my father died and that shattered my Olympic dream. I was very young and (3) had to leave school and also my wrestling career to support my family. I started a wrestling pitch here to train young boys. We follow a strict regime. We exercise daily and eat healthy. (4) Our diet has vegetables, fruits, butter and lots and lots of milk.
About ten years ago a lot of night clubs and pubs opened in Delhi, that’s where I found work as a bouncer. Then there were more clubs which needed more bouncers. I have helped more than a hundred young boys from the village to earn a living through this profession.
The two worlds I experience don’t meet. (5) I’ve never touched alcohol and meat in my life. In the clubs I see not only men but also women drinking alcohol. Young kids can be seen smoking and drinking.
I have a wife and two sons. (6) My wife doesn’t step out of the house on her own, let alone going to a nightclub. I wonder how parents allow their daughters to be out till late night.
We try to keep our cool, but sometimes people get drunk and abuse us. Some (7) people come from influential families and it gets very difficult to control them. Then we have to use force. The police also favour them. These rich people don’t know the value of hard-earned money.
Life in the village is honest and simple. These modern and educated people are out of touch with their roots.
I am a bouncer, but my passion lies in training the younger generations. (8) My dream is to see them compete at the Olympics one day.
