Dubai: How does one who is a doctor by profession, an actor by passion and a martial arts follower leave his mark?
Dr Prashant Nair, a specialist orthodontist at his self-owned Medico Clinic in Deira, has created a piece of history when he became the first Indian to win a gold medal at the Fourth Hall of Fame International Arnis Tournament held in Manila, Philippines, recently.
Arnis, also known as ‘Kali’ or ‘Eskrima’, is the national sport and traditional martial art of the Philippines. Arnis involves hand-to-hand combat, joint locks, grappling and weapon disarming techniques. While emphasis is laid on weapons for this art form, some systems put bare hands as the primary focus and some old schools do not teach weapons at all.
Nair, who hails from the Indian state of Kerala, came to Dubai as a two-year-old with his dad Dr R.K.K. Nair, who was among the first medical practitioners in Dubai. While doing his early schooling at The Indian High School, an obese Nair was sent to a karate gym in the neighbourhood to serve a dual purpose — get rid of the excess body mass and acquire self-defence skills.
After mid-school, Nair shifted to Cochin for his high school and junior college at the Maharaja’s College. His dentistry studies took the youngster to the famed Karnataka Medical College (KMC) in Manipal University near Udupi, Mangalore, and a few years later, a Fellowship from the Oklahoma State University in 1997 saw the young doctor spread his wings till his return to Dubai in 2000 to set up his specialised practice at the same clinic run by his dad on Naif Road in Deira.
All along, he never gave up his search for excellence in martial arts — starting from the traditional Karate to the Japanese art form of Aikido and lastly, to Arnis only in February 2016. “I was running out of options and wanted to keep my body moving all the time, and that led me to Arnis Master Timothy Alfonso II. Meeting him gave me a fresh purpose, and in November, the Master told me I was good enough to participate in an international competition and we started off with a rigorous three-month training regimen,” Nair recalled.
Nair defeated famed ‘arnisadors’ such as Veka Rounevaara from Finland and Josh Bilon of the host nation to take the gold at the biennial competition.
Among other things, Dr Nair is a certified deep sea diver and an actor in Malayalam movies such as ‘Tuppakki’ (2012), ‘Diamond Necklace’ (2012) and ‘Arrambam’ (2013), while also being featured in ‘Ted Gambordella’s Martial Arts Tributes’ as one of the Grand Masters of the martial arts.
“At 46, I have nothing much to prove to anyone. I firmly believe that good health and healthy living is for all to enjoy, and that is why I want my message to go across to all the people in the UAE. I want to walk the talk, and inspire everyone with my personal example,” Nair added.
