INDIA, May 16, 2017 (India Times): Whether it was Rustam-e-Hind (Champion of India) or Rustam-e-Zamana (Champion of the Universe), the titles conferred on Gama Pehalwan always fell short in describing the legend. His legacy is such that even 57 years after his death, every wrestler in India and Pakistan aspires to be like Gama-The Undefeated. Like all other true champions and icons of sports, Gama Pehalwan too was far above the petty concerns of religion, caste, creed and all the things that divide human beings. And the example of it came in the thick of the riots that marked the partition of British India into India and Pakistan. Gama, a Muslim by faith saved hundreds of Hindus of his colony in Lahore from the bloodthirsty mob.
Gama Pehalwan lived in Amritsar, where he was born in 1878. But citing the political atmosphere of the country in which the buzz of partition was reaching crescendo, Gama Pehalwan shifted to Lahore in early 1947. The majority of the colony he was settled in was Hindu and all were jubilant about the great wrestler becoming their neighbour. Gama had sensed what was coming and therefore, he promised Hindus of his colony that he would defend them with his life. As riots escalated, Gama knew his colony wasn’t safe and he wouldn’t be able to protect them beyond a point. Therefore, he escorted them to the border. Gama bore all the expenses from his pocket and bid adieu his neighbours with teary eyes.
More of this history at “source” above.