Shawn retires

I remember the time it started. Around end 1992, the Gulf War & cricket World Cup had just got over & had brought along with them, to newly liberalised India, this wonder of new technology called Cable TV. Yes, now we had more than 1 channel to watch & they showed programs that people actually wanted to see. And Dad, the proud lover of technology that he was, & is, was the 1st in the building to get a connection.

So coming back to the topic, there was this show which used to air once a week (I forget which day) on Prime Sports at 2:30 in the afternoon. And every boy in the colony used to be a big fan. India had taken a liking to WWE (incidentally, till today it is the most watched sport in India after Cricket, believe it!). And among the crop of stars who stood out (like Papa Shango, the Undertaker, the Model, El Matador, Razor Ramon, the Hitman, Macho Man, Ultimate Warrior, the Mountie - so many of them) was this young guy who looked like Akshay Kumar - that is how Jolly & me referred to him.

Cocky, arrogant, full of attitude & having controversial (for that time) words like 'sexy' in his intro song, his name was Shawn Michaels. Incidentally, this was soon after he had turned heel - & he played heel to perfection - after putting Marty Jennety though a glass partition when the Rockers split. We were just getting to know the intricacies of this new sport & Shawn easily stood out with his fast, athletic brand of fighting & of course, Sweet Chin Music - one of the best finishers ever.

As time went by, his persona became even more twisted, which was perplexing to kids like me, since we were all so fond of him & wanted him to be the good guy. Soon, Hunter arrived on the scene & Nitro started telecasting in India on the TNT movie channel (where did that vanish?) & the Monday Night Wars were on in full swing. His teaming up with Hunter & Chyna to form DX & his constant haranguing of Bret Hart made me hate him, because Bret was the ultimate face in wrestling at that time.

DX's chop became so famous that little kids like Deepu would execute it after taking wickets in a cricket match, while their parents were watching! And DX's trademark line was forever imprinted in my mind when Nilesh Charhate, while coming out after having answered yet another disastrous exam paper in 1999, said the following to the person who asked him how it had been - 'I have 2 words for you - Suck it!'. The Montreal Screw Job established one of wrestling's biggest betrayals & Shawn as one of the industry's biggest stars.

Then came the end of Nitro, and nWo's invasion storyline - & I was somehow overjoyed to see Shawn joining Diesel's gang. Things moved on to the Rock era. Shawn & company were pushed to the sidelines a bit, but were never really out of the spotlight. However Hunter (now HHH) was coming into his own & DX evolved into 'Evolution' as Shawn took off on a break.

Things continued, & I lost touch with WWE - but just for a while. Cena's domination put all the young guys into the forefront - & stars like Orton, Edge & Christian increasingly caught the fans' fancy. Shawn soldiered on, but was increasingly beginning to look out of place. Which is why when on March 29th, he finally announced his retirement - for good - I was both sad & happy. Sad that he would be gone, but happy that he decided to do this when he did.

I've grown up from a kid to a married man watching him & his antics. It's been a long time & it's been a memorable journey. Which is why I'd like to thank Shawn - for having been part of the memories of my growing up years - & for being what he was - the show stopper.