Mr. India hopes to lay a smack down on Azeem the Dream when he brings some rock ‘n’ wrestling to the Royal City this summer.
New West resident and business owner Rish Koya, whose Mr. India persona is All Star Wrestling’s current heavyweight champion, is planning a jam-packed day of wrestling at Royal City Centre on Saturday, July 22.
“It’s going to be an exciting show,” Koya said. “It’s something that’s never been done before. It’s going to be wrestling, but it’s not your typical wrestling show. It’s going to be very, very entertaining. Expect lots of surprises and things you have never ever seen before. There’s only one way to find out – you have to be there.”
The Royal City Wrestling event is taking place in the food court at Royal City Centre, where a wrestling ring will be set up.
“We are pretty excited,” Koya said. “We want to really localize it and make it about New West. That’s why we are calling it Royal City Wrestling. This will be our inaugural show.”
The event will be taking on the same day as the Uptown Live street festival, which features live music on outdoor stages in uptown New West, as well as food trucks and other offerings.
Hayley Sinclair, a New West resident who helps organize local events, believes the two free events will mesh well.
“I think it’s a good complement to the music. I think it’s a really similar style,” she said. “People are there to have a good day. It’s family friendly. The whole wrestling show is family friendly so it’s a great fit.”
While she’s never been part of a wrestling event, Sinclair said she’s met a lot of wrestling fans in New West.
“I am always surprised at how many fans of wrestling there are,” she said. “When you are talking about it, you find there are a lot of wrestling fans in New West. I don’t follow wrestling - it’s not really in my realm of interest until now - but every time I mention it, there’s people who are very supportive, think it’s a great idea, think it’s a great venue. It’s such a fabulous spot up here.”
Royal City Wrestling’s event at Royal City Centre will feature a tournament during the day and a show that evening.
“We will be running matches throughout the day. So all the folks in the mall will be, ‘what the heck is going on?’ type thing. Wrestlers will be walking around the mall in full costumes doing their thing and promoting a bit,” Koya said. “The main show is going to be that night.”
The main event will feature a number of wrestlers from All Star Wrestling, which is also providing a brand new ring for the event.
“Mr. India is going to be the main event against Azeem the Dream,” said Koya, who owns Koya Bell Fitness in uptown New West. “The thing is, Mr. India is originally from India, but of course he lives in New West. He’s a proud New Wester and he’s a current All Star Wrestling heavyweight champion.”
Azeem the Dream, however, is far from being a fan of the Royal City.
“He is part of Team USA. He doesn’t like Canada and he specifically hates the City of New Westminster. He has a strong dislike for New Westminster,” Koya said. “He says he’s got a lot of stuff on New West and promises to let us all know in the coming weeks. There is going to be video after video of him telling us what’s wrong with our city.”
That doesn’t sit well with Mr. India.
“I can’t let that go unanswered,” Koya said. “This is my city, this is my home.”
Koya, who attended a wrestling shows in New Westminster as a kid, hopes to bring wrestling to various facilities around town in the future.
“It is a family show. When parents come they get to become kids again,” he said. “It’s that three or four hours of suspended disbelief, completely away from everyday life.”
Sinclair supports the idea of bringing new entertainment offerings to the Royal City.
“I think this is the kind of event the city would really love and embrace. I see a real fit for it – that’s why I am involved,” she said. “I see this as a gap that we don’t have in terms of entertainment.”
For updates on the event, visit royalcitywrestling.com or check out the Royal City Wrestling page on Facebook.
