Aslam Inamdar

Aslam Inamdar is an Indian kabaddi all-rounder, captain of Puneri Paltan and a two-time Asian Games gold medallist. Born on 23 February 2000, he is known for bold raiding and for a life story that took him from collecting scrap bottles in a Maharashtra village to the top of the podium.

Early life

Inamdar grew up in Takli Bhan in Maharashtra’s Ahilyanagar district, one of five children. His father died when he was young, and his mother worked in other homes doing household chores to keep the family going. From the age of 11 or 12 he sold discarded bottles to scrap dealers, and later worked at tea stalls and juice bars, cleaned washrooms and laboured in fields.

Kabaddi was the one constant. Inspired by his elder brother Waseem, by 14 or 15 he was travelling alone to tournaments, sometimes sleeping under train seats and earning between Rs 200 and Rs 500 a match. A fractured leg in 2014 left him watching that year’s Asian Games on television.

PKL career

The Pro Kabaddi League changed his life. He earned Rs 8 lakh in his first season (“Eight lakh felt like eight crore to me”) and bought his mother a gold necklace with his first major earnings. After Season 9 he took her for a ride in a car he had bought himself.

His official PKL record covers five seasons with Puneri Paltan: 87 matches, 621 points (537 raid, 84 tackle), 13 Super 10s and 1 High 5. He scored 189 points in Season 8, 150 in Season 9, when Puneri reached the final, and 168 in Season 10, when they became champions.

Season 12

In Season 12 (2025) he played 17 matches and scored 76 points, 57 from raids and 19 from tackles, with 1 Super 10. His raid strike rate was 33% and his tackle strike rate 40%.

International career

Inamdar was part of the Indian squad that won gold at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, and won a second gold in Nagoya, where India beat Iran in the final. With India’s lead narrow, he made a daring raid deep into the Iranian half and came away with two touches. Teammate Pawan Sehrawat called it a bad decision, but Inamdar smiled: “ant bhala toh sab bhala” (if the end is good, it’s all worth it). He calls Iran India’s most challenging opponent because of its experienced defence.

Off the mat

At his training ground in Thane, Inamdar talks to juniors, particularly those from underprivileged backgrounds, about his journey. “I want young, underprivileged players to dream big and aim to achieve even more than I have,” he said. He takes pride that his village now has three PKL players in one team.

Statistics and team history: Pro Kabaddi League.