As I was travelling in Kashmir, I met this young talented soul named “Junaid Ahmed Wani” who is a resident of Mushkjal village of Lolab valley. There is a saying “Koyla jal kar hi heera milta hai,” The same saying came true when Junaid narrated his story of being “The Martial Art Boy.”
Junaid Ahmed Wani (05 July 2000) was born and raised in Mushkjal village in Kupwara district. His father, Wali Md Wani, works in a private sector in Pahalgam and mother Hamida Begum is a homemaker. He is the youngest of six siblings. He has three sisters and two brothers. One of his brother Aashiq Hussain Wani is a teacher in Varnou and the second brother Khalid Hussain Wani is a driver in Kupwara. He attended his school in Handwara and is currently pursuing B.A. (3rd year) degree in Degree College Handwara. Muskjhal village comes in the rural area where there is no scope to pursue his passion. People who have such background where they can’t showcase their talents turn out to be challenging. But, self-motivated people always find a way to reason and strength to complete a task. From his young age he motivated himself to learn martial arts and the largest influence on Junaid’s martial arts development is the famous Bollywood actor Vidyut Jammwal.
He is an example of hard work & determination. He keeps challenging himself and his spirit is paying him back beautifully. Initially, he didn’t get support from his family, so he started practicing at home without any equipment or guidance. His father wanted him to finish his studies first but on the contrary his mother supported him to the fullest because she saw in him what his father couldn’t i.e. passion and determination.
Google is the platform for people like Junaid where they learn anything to everything for free. So, he literally turned himself into a different personality by learning all the new techniques and tactics of martial arts which he really enjoyed. With his mother’s financial support, he subsequently joined “Olympians Fight Club” in Handwara and started learning martial arts over there. He gives all the credit to his mother for being a huge support system for him in the end, without her he couldn’t have reached where he stands today.
After years of practice and dedication Junaid achieved heights of success when he participated in “Open J&K KUDO Championship” which was a state level competition held on 04-05 August 2021 and won a Gold medal. With his continuous hardwork, recently on 01 January 2022 he was awarded with the title of “Best Student of the Year” by Budokan Karate-Do Kyokai, India.
Junaid is a black belt martial art sportsman who is constantly training himself for National level competitions under his trainer Renshi Faisal Nazir. In future, Junaid wants to be a police officer. He wants to serve his nation with all vigour and his strength. In J&K where the youth are being distracted and have a yearning for drugs and other activities Junaid is completely leading and making a trend for the society. There is a vibe of positivity in the village as well as the in the valley because of his X-factor. Each of us should inspire and provide them with opportunities to pursue their interests and discover their unique abilities.
Kashmir RootStock 