The Original Playa from the Himalayas
January 28, 2005
In the bone-crunching world of professional wrestling, known for its over-the-top characters like The Rock and Hulk Hogan, Sonjay Dutt is breaking new ground. A rising star seen weekly on National Wrestling Alliance/Total Nonstop Action telecasts, Dutt — “The Original Playa from the Himalayas” — is pro wrestling’s only Indian American competitor.
A first-generation American to parents from New Delhi, Dutt, 22, says he grew up watching wrestling with his father. “As far back as I can remember, wrestling was on television in the house,” Dutt recalled. “I got hooked on it at a very, very young age.”
As Dutt was growing up, “Nature Boy” Ric Flair, the NWA World Champion at the time, was his idol. Then Dutt discovered videotapes of wrestling from Japan and an American organization called Eastern (and then Extreme) Championship Wrestling. There he saw a competitor who inspired him like no other.
“I really became enthralled by Sabu,” Dutt remembered. “I saw this guy that was supposedly Indian flying around the ring. I said, ‘Man, I want to do that!’”
Dutt says that despite his father’s love for watching professional wrestling, his parents were not so supportive when their only child first revealed intentions to pursue it as a career. “My parents were thinking, ‘It’s just a phase; don’t take it seriously,’” he said.
Though he felt pressure from Indian culture as a whole to “become a lawyer, doctor [or] engineer,” Dutt was determined to follow his dreams. He enrolled in a wrestling school in his hometown of Washington, D.C. — The Monster Factory run by mat legend Larry Sharpe.
As time went on, and Dutt started spending every weekend on the road traveling to wrestling shows, his parents saw his seriousness. “They became my biggest fans,” Dutt said. “I thank them for all the support they’ve given me. It makes it so much easier to make the transition into this career.”
In 2003 Dutt moved up to the “big leagues,” working for the NWA/TNA. Now he is seen weekly on Fox Sports’ IMPACT! Wrestling as well as the company’s pay-per-view broadcasts.
As a member of the company’s “X-Division” — comprising primarily men from lower-weight divisions with exciting, acrobratic in-ring styles — Dutt has excelled. He says he works hard to separate himself from “every other high-flyer” on the company’s roster.
“I try to incorporate my personality, my charisma and the character in my moves,” he explained. And who is “The Original Playa from the Himalayas”? “He’s a guy who came from India to be a star in wrestling,” Dutt said. “It’s very different from what most U.S. wrestling fans are used to. There are no other Indian characters in mainstream wrestling.”
After joining the NWA/TNA, Dutt was given the opportunity to live out a dream and team with his childhood idol Sabu. “It was really cool to hang with Sabu and get to know who he really is,” Dutt said. “It was definitely one of my career highlights.”
“I’m very fortunate to say I’m living out a dream,” Dutt explained. “I just want to continue doing it and take it as far as I can.”
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