Puja Tomar: From Budhana Village to the UFC - The First Indian Woman to Make History

Puja Tomar didn't just make history. She made it from scratch. No gym. No coach. No blueprint. Just a dream she saw on a screen, a friend to train with in a park, and a stubbornness that outlasted every obstacle her culture, her country, and her circumstances could throw at her. In this episode, we sit down with the first Indian woman ever signed to the UFC - and we go all the way back to the beginning. We get into: What it meant to be born a girl in Uttar Pradesh - and the weight that came with it Her father's death, and the secret newspaper clipping he left behind Training in parks, watching YouTube, and building a fighting career with nothing Her first MMA fight and what she did with her earnings Stepping into ONE Championship with no corner and a stranger she'd just met The walk to the UFC cage and what she was thinking What she wants to open up for every girl watching from India Faith, loss, and finding peace inside the fight This is a story about what happens when the door doesn't exist yet - and you decide to build it anyway. This is Puja Tomar, and this is the VRSS podcast.