Someone Somewhere

In a world where conceit, ego, pride and prejudice reigns supreme,
it is heartening to meet Farman, the “Strongman of India 2005,”
as he teaches you how to accept life as it comes.


It is 11.30 am. The clock chimes 12 pm, then its 12.30 pm. Time goes by… But its better to wait-Making his way through the Bangalore traffic jam, humps and bumps on the road, buses overtaking him, he has to drive through the concrete jungle on his made-to-order Honda bike which has four wheels instead of two.


You can hear the clip clop of his crutches as he limps into the stone doorway. People would not even see him passing by as this little man does not have a towering height. Someone said-“the kid has come”-Shhhh!! He is no kid-this is Farman Basha, the “Strongman of India 2005.” Farman, the 30 year-old Para-Olympian from Karnataka recently won this title at the Seniors Powerliftiing Championships for the Physically Handicapped held in Nagpur. Farman won the 52 kgs category at this Meet, with a lift of 137.5 kgs! This is a new National Record!


Born into a religious family, Farman had the company of his six brothers and six sisters. His father earlier working with a public sector undertaking as an operator, now lives a quiet retired life. Farman’s mom instilled the Islamic values into the children from day one.


When Farman was just one and a half years old, he was struck with Polio. Treatments of all types was tried on him, but in vain and so Farman continued to live with Polio.


As a kid, most often others around him would visit the gym, and would also scorn at him that as he was limping and so he would not manage things at the gym. This doubled his courage and he determined to prove that despite his handicap he was in no way less strong than the others around him. So started Farman’s journey towards making himself a strong sportsman.


This included travelling in jam-packed buses to the Polytechnic College to complete his diploma in Electronics. After completing his apprenticeship at Bharat Electronics Limited, he had to look around for a stable job and his search continues till this day.


“Sometimes, my handicap puts off people, they think I cannot do many things at work, so I set up the Public Phone Booth business, but had to shut it down due to the invasion of the mobiles,” says Farman.


In 1996, Farman encountered some encouraging sports-persons who persuaded him to take up Powerlifting. There in Chennai, he got his first Silver Medal. From here, Farman flew to Bangkok for the International Powerlifting Championship and won laurels for India. At the Malaysia World Champion-ships for Para Olympians, he stood ninth in world ranking and then he struck gold at Netherlands at the Dutch Open Championships 2004 in Powerlifting. This was followed by the Athens Olympics too in 2004 where he was ranked 10th in Powerlifting .


It was not a smooth road for Farman as even to get sponsors for his trips abroad, he had to run from pillar to post. Infact , one businessman, Rizwan of M.FAR company helped Farman through his trips and also the expenses that are involved for the preparation for the championships.


Farman sees his future in Powerlifting and wants to bring name and fame for the country. But at the same time, he wishes to be independent econom-ically. With moral support from his wife Alisha, who is a new revert to Islam, Farman has big plans to become the “Strongman of the World.”


One has many lessons to learn from the grit and determination of Farman. He is not sitting there sulking in a corner worrying about his handicap nor is he complaining. He is thankful to Allah for His blessings .


In a world where conceit, ego, pride and prejudice reigns supreme, it is heartening to meet Farman as he teaches you how to accept life as it comes and take the pain and pleasure with equal grace and dignity. Many of us succumb to the pressures of what the world says or thinks about us, we try to live life on the terms of the world. So take a ride on your bikes, bus or car, meet Farman as that will help you put away the crutches you hold on to in life-be it emotional or material!


Farman can be reached at :9886171436/9886797052 or C/0 Rizwan, Nasheman Weekly, No-9, Ibrahim Saheb Street, Bangalore-1, Ph: 25592124, 25598839.