I’m not going to torture you with a long intro to this editorial in the same manner that Veer Mahaan tortures jobbers with his brutal Cervical Clutch. Instead, I’m just going to jump right into how Veer Mahaan doesn’t suck like you might think he does, because the fact of the matter is, he doesn’t.
Veer Mahaan Doesn’t Suck, He Is Misunderstood
That’s right, Veer Mahaan does not suck, not at all. The man is an impressive physical specimen, a powerhouse, in fact, he is a beast of an athlete. You probably don’t know this, but the dude was a pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates. In fact, Veer was the first Indian to play professional baseball. Veer not only played for the Pirates, but he also played in the minor leagues.
I like Veer Mahaan, I think he is a talented wrestler with the potential to be an interesting character. Sadly, I believe that the giant is misunderstood. He is not only misunderstood by the fans, but more importantly, he is misunderstood by the writers. WWE’s booking of Veer Mahaan straight-up sucks. Nobody wants to see a monster destroying jobbers on RAW. It is a complete waste of TV time. Hell, even Veer Mahaan doesn’t want to see Veer Mahaan destroying jobbers on RAW.
It is apparent that WWE writers don’t understand how to use Veer Mahaan. They almost had it right, but then, well, Dominik Mysterio disappeared. Why didn’t they continue that storyline? Is it dead? I’d be interested in seeing that storyline as a coming-of-age feud for Dominick without his dad there to help him against a giant. Wouldn’t you?
Veer Is A Throwback
Back when I was a kid we had Nikolai Volkoff, Iron Sheik, and Kamala. These are the names I think of when I see Veer Mahaan. If this was 1985, Mahaan would be right there with these guys, because the character is a total throwback. These guys didn’t do acrobatics and flip all over the ring like a gymnast, they just came out and were evil. They destroyed wrestlers with straight-up brutality, and not Rhea Ripley “brutality”, I’m talking real beat downs. This is exactly what Veer Mahaan is doing now, throwback wrestling. Except Mahaan is not doing it to the right wrestlers.
Veer Mahaan is intended to be like Kamala and Nikolai Volkoff. A big scary monster that a wrestling fan fear is about to brutally assault one of their favorite wrestlers, which back then would have been Hulk Hogan, or Big John Studd. I remember watching Mid-South Wrestling as a kid growing up in the ’80s. Whenever Kamala came out, I was genuinely scared because I knew someone was about to get absolutely wrecked.
This feeling of fear is the same feeling kids should experience nowadays when Veer Mahaan makes his entrance. But, instead, this is the time when we go to the bathroom or to get a beer out of the fridge because we know the match will have no story or importance. I’m not so sure that this feeling of “fear” is possible in wrestling in the current age of the internet. I appreciate that Veer is a throwback, and I would appreciate it if WWE would book him as such.
Back To The Future
So, what’s the problem? Everyone loves a throwback, right? I love a throwback, especially a throwback wrestler. Unfortunately, it just simply doesn’t work in the age of the internet. Wrestling has evolved too much from the old days of wrestling for a throwback character like Veer Mahaan to be feared by an audience. At least not by a character like this. It would have to be taken much further and be much more horrific somehow. I don’t think WWE is prepared to go that route, not with their dedication to a PG rating and all.
When I was a little kid, I remember going to the drug store one day with a friend who also watched wrestling and seeing a magazine that had Kamala on the cover holding a spear. On that spear was Hulk Hogan’s bloody severed head. We thought Kamala had really killed Hulk Hogan, and we waited all week for wrestling to come on to see if Hulk Hogan was still alive. We were legitimately horrified for Hogan. This type of mystique doesn’t exist anymore, it just can’t. Why? Because kids are on the internet. Kids see way more messed up shit on the internet that is ten times scarier than Veer Mahaan putting the Cervical Clutch on Dominick.
With every wrestler having social media and seeing them in “real life”, a throwback monster like Veer Mahaan just isn’t believable. Wrestling is just like film, it has to suspend reality, you have to believe it for it to work. The internet has ruined that for us wrestling fans, amongst other things.
Mahaan Needs A Hacksaw Jim Dugan
Characters like Veer Mahaan need a patriotic American to feud with, someone who literally flies the American flag. Veer needs a two-by-four-wielding American flag flying Hacksaw Jim Duggan. Unfortunately, a Jim Duggan doesn’t exist in WWE currently. Cody sure as hell isn’t filling that persona. What ever happened to these kinds of characters? Are we too “WOKE” as a society now to love a wrestler who loves their country? I sure in the hell hope not.
One of my all-time favorite storylines in wrestling was when Hacksaw Jim Duggan was feuding with Kamala and Skandor Akbar. These stories were told masterfully because you had a good old American hero battling it out with a foreign threat, and it was one hundred percent believable. Hacksaw Jim Duggan would get busted open, beat some ass, and then fly the American flag around the ring and salute the crowd. This is exactly what Veer Mahaan needs to make his character work.
Place Your Bets
So, how long will it be before Veer Mahaan is “ALL ELITE”? Will WWE do what it takes to make Veer Mahaan more than a mid-card time filler? The hopeful answer for me is yes, but we all know the probable answer is that he will most likely be cut before SummerSlam.
What do you think? Do you agree that Veer Mahaan is a throwback? Would you like to see more throwbacks like Kamala? What top superstar would you like to see Veer Mahaan have a storyline with? What story would you like to see his character tell? Let me know in the comments or hit me up on Twitter.
