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How to Wrestle with Gender Norms and Win
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How to Wrestle with Gender Norms and Win

19 MIN · EN · STATUS: [ STREAMING ]
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In a village where she keeps hearing "women don't do that," Payal Sharma wants to become a professional wrestler. The film follows her to the gym of Sakshi Malik, who grew up in a similarly small Indian village and went on to become the first Indian woman to win an Olympic wrestling medal. Malik takes Payal under her wing, training her in technique and mindset while the two talk through what it costs to defy family expectations and community norms in pursuit of a sport built around physical dominance usually reserved for men. Interviews with Payal's family and scenes inside the training hall show the friction directly: sparring sessions, coaching feedback, and conversations about what her choice means back home. Part of DW's "Choices: Dare to Dream" series, the episode treats Payal's ambition as a real test of agency rather than an inspirational slogan, ending on her next match rather than a resolved outcome.