The Great Khali

The Great Khali is a professional wrestler, wrestling promoter, and actor who was born in India. His most famous ring name was The Great Khali, which he used in WWE. In the year 2000, he made his professional wrestling debut. He was a Punjab Police officer before starting his professional wrestling career. He’s appeared in four Hollywood films, two Bollywood films, and many TV shows. As a member of the class of 2021, he was inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

The Great Khali’s Early Life

The Great Khali was born into a Hindu Rajput family in the Dhiraina village of Himachal Pradesh’s Sirmaur district to Jwala Ram and his wife, Tandi Devi as  Dalip Singh Rana ion 27 August 1972. He had little education as a child and was forced to support his family from an early age. He worked as a roadside laborer before moving to Shimla to work as a security guard. Here, he was noticed by Mahal Singh Bhullar, Punjab’s former police chief, who is known for assisting several Punjab Police players in achieving international recognition. As a result, Khali was offered a job with the Punjab Police Department.

Despite his initial reluctance to leave his home state, Khali accepted the job in 1993 after his brother was offered one. They both moved to Jalandhar, and Khali became interested in wrestling, which he practiced at a local gym.

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The Great Khali’s Professional Life

The Great Khali arrived in the United States in 1999 as a trainee at the All-Pro Wrestling (APW) boot camp. Giant Singh made his professional wrestling debut on October 7, 2000, when he teamed up with Tony Jones in a match against the “West Side Playaz.”

Singh was training with Brian Ong on May 28, 2001. Instead of pushing off Singh’s back as instructed, he performed a wrestling move called flapjack on Ong, and Ong grabbed Singh’s shirt.

Ong collided with his coccyx or tailbone and violently slammed his head against the mat. Ong died due to the move, which was compounded by the concussion he had earlier and which the APW trainers had misdiagnosed. After a day of deliberation, Ong’s family sued APW for liability and was awarded $1.3 million in damages.

WCW signed Khali in 2001 after relocating to San Francisco. Vince McMahon, the owner of WWE, bought out the promotion and cut his time there short.

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In New Japan Pro-Wrestling (NJPW), Khali also used the Giant Singh gimmick. Masahiro Chono and Giant Silva formed ‘Club 7,’ the world’s tallest tag team, under Masahiro Chono’s leadership. On October 8, 2001, their debut match easily defeated Yutaka Yoshie, Kenzo Suzuki, Hiroshi Tanahashi, and Wataru Inoue. In August 2002, Silva turned on Khali and defeated him in a singles match, causing the two to break up.

With the WWE, he signed a developmental contract in January 2006, and he was assigned to the Georgia-based promotion “Deep South Wrestling” (DSW). The Great Khali wrestled under his real name with Tommy Dreamer, the ‘Slaughter Boys,’ and Palmer Canon.

After much deliberation, Khali and WWE management settled on the ring name “The Great Khali,” which was inspired by the Hindu goddess Kali.

Khali made his debut on the April 7 episode of ‘SmackDown,’ interfering in a match between The Undertaker and Mark Henry, with Shawn Daivari serving as his manager. Due to his interference, he resulted in a no-contest ruling. He also had a short career with the ‘ECW’ brand.

Khali won his first pay-per-view match against The Undertaker on May 21, 2006, at the ‘Judgment Day.’

During the next few years, he had feuds with The Undertaker, John Cena, Shawn Michaels, Edge, Kane, and Randy Orton, to name a few, and developed a menacing foreign-born heel persona.

2007 was, without a doubt, the most successful year of his career thus far. On June 11, 2007, he was drafted to the ‘Raw’ brand. After eliminating Batista and Kane, the other two major contenders for the title, in a 20-person battle royal match, he won the ‘WWE World Heavyweight Championship.’ In a triple threat match with Rey Mysterio, he lost the belt to Batista on September 16 at the ‘Unforgiven’ event.

He adopted the Punjabi Playboy persona from 2008 onwards. He hosted the weekly ‘Khali Kiss Cam‘ with his manager, Ranjin Singh, to call up some seemingly random woman from the crowd to kiss Khali.

The old menacing giant gimmick reappeared in May 2011. As his character was used to launch new, up-and-coming WWE talent, he suffered a series of setbacks. He left the promotion when his contract expired on November 13, 2014.

In February 2015, Khali founded his promotion and training academy, Continental Wrestling Entertainment (CWE), in Jalandhar. On December 12, 2015, they held their first event.

Khali resigned in November 2014 to return to India and coach aspiring WWE Superstars. Still, he returned at WWE Battleground 2017 to assist WWE Champion and fellow countryman Jinder Mahal in escaping the Punjabi Prison match, which he pioneered. He was mentioned prominently on the following ‘SmackDown’ episode on July 25, indicating that the promotion has long-term plans for him.

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The Great Khali’s Television appearances

From October 2010 to January 2011, Khali was a contestant on the television reality show Bigg Boss, where he finished as first runner-up. Khali was given special treatment by the show, which included a custom-made bed for him. In addition, Khali made a brief appearance in episode 18 of NBC’s Outsourced in March 2011 and the episode “Fight School” of the Disney Channel TV show Pair of Kings as Atog, a rock-smashing giant.

The Great Khali’s Net Worth

The Great Khali has bagged a net worth of over $6 million as of 2021, primarily derived from his professional wrestling career. According to the source, his highest-earning jobs include WWE, which pays each employee $974,000 per year with a $300,000 bonus and $2.2 million in brand endorsements. He also received a bonus of $900,000 and $300,000 in 2015.

However, no reliable sources are claiming his actual net worth or revenues from his career. He also owns a home in Dhiriana, Himachal Pradesh, India, although the property’s worth remains hidden. He also makes a lot of money through ads and appearances on TV and in film. He has also created his wrestling school in Punjab, where he has instructed future Indian wrestlers.

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Who is Khali Married to?

On February 27, 2002, the Great Khali married Harminder Kaur, his wife. On February 26, 2014, their daughter Alveen was born, twelve years after their marriage. In a court session held at the ‘M.O. Campbell Educational Center’ in Houston, Texas, on February 20, 2014, he was granted naturalized US citizenship.

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