Actor Akshay Kumar organised the 15th Akshay Kumar International Kudo Tournament in Surat, Gujarat, recently. He said he decided to introduce the practice in India after realising its importance for self-defence, and now is dedicated to motivating the youth to take up the form “without worrying about money.”
Akshay said, “I trained for Kudo during Rowdy Rathore, and before that I was training in Muay Thai and Gojukai Karate for many years. It was only realising the effectiveness of Kudo in self defence situations that I decided to introduce it in India.”
He adds, “I wanted to provide an international platform to the children from every town and village… An international tournament where everyone can participate without worrying about money or costs, hence my tournament was started. It is absolutely free of cost for the last 15 years, in fact, during the lockdown too, the tournament was kept going online”.
This year, the actor was joined by actress Disha Patani, a martial arts enthusiast herself, at the tournament. Kumar said he feels it is important for youth icons to use their star power in mobilising people towards finding the right way to be fit. He himself trained in several martial arts forms over the years. He is trained in Karate, Taekwondo and Muay Thai.
“I always say that martial arts is not just about kicking, punching and fighting. If you take all the three away from martial arts, there are virtues such as discipline, determination, will power, punctuality and so many more will remain (with you). And this alone has been the cornerstone which has shaped my personal and professional life,” he said.