Interview with Legendary Trainer Arjan Pramod - Namphon, Namkabuan & the Golden Age (English Subs)

This video above is my interview with the legendary Golden Age trainer of the Nongkipahayuthgym, Arjan Pramod (click CC to turn on the English Subtitles). He produced the 2nd most stadium champions in the Golden Age, only behind Arjan Yodtong of Sityodtong Gym. Nongkipahayut is a gym located in and named for the small town in Buriram of Nongki - I visited and filmed with him for the Muay Thai Library a few years ago, you can watch that session further down below - and was most notable for producing the great brothers Namphon and Namkabuan. 

The occasion for this interview was a difficult one. Namkabuan, now only in his 40s, has been diagnosis with stage 4 Lung Cancer, which has spread into his brain. Namphon had already passed away, at a similar age, from complications of tuberculosis a few years ago. I traveled up to interview and support Namkabuan at his restaurant in Khorat. Through the support of my readers we've been able to raise several thousand dollars to financially cushion what he was going through, and he clearly felt fortified by the support and encouragement he was receiving from around the world. Going up to see him, we called Karuhat to say we could pick him up in Bangkok on the way and both he and Namkabuan enthusiastically jumped at that idea - they are good friends and hadn't seen each other in a long while.  You can still send support to Namkabuan, and keep updated on his health here. I also wanted to interview Namkabuan about his life, to send his story and spirit out there for everyone to hear (watch that interview with Namkabuan below), because more than anything, Namkabuan is just an incredible being whose fights are expressive of, but not exhaustive of expressing, who he is as a man. 

Arjan Promod, who lives in Nongki a few hours away, drove down to be a part of the gathering. You can see he's wearing a sharp suit He's very formal, very aware of his presentation, which is evident in both his grooming, demeanor, and how he speaks. He is a time capsule of a man, but he expresses something about the dignity of Muay Thai that is very precious to me. Samart and his older brother Kongtoranee, a pair of champion brothers from the Arjan Yodtong side of Golden Age history, had come in support of Namkabuan the day before this interview, you can see Kevin's photographs from the two days here. I wanted to interview Arjan Pramod about what it was like to raise the brother champions Namphon and Namkabuan, talk about what he saw in them as kids and then as fighters, and share with everyone this amazing man's dignity and perspective. That's what we cover in this interview. He has seen so much, and the passion of his life is Muay Thai. Arjan is in his 70s now and he still works on committees, even while his wife asks him to retire, but he continues because the work is so meaningful to him.

Things Arjan Pramod talks about in this Interview:

• Namphon was a long-distance runner as a young boy, not a Muay Thai fighter.
• How Arjan Pramod was called "artless" because Namkabuan defeated Dokmaipa with the low-clinch in a big match.
• That Namphon was cut in training and took several stitches one week before his fight vs Samart, a fight which resulted in a famous bloody photo:

• Arjan Pramod counted a total of 268 stitches Namphon had taken in his career.
• Sometimes Mr. Songchai arranged fights with big weight disadvantages. Sangtiennoi was particularly big.
• Namkabuan had to give up 5 kg to Sakmongkol.
• Why Arjan Pramod dresses so nicely when going to Bangkok stadia.
• He received both lots of praise, and lots of criticism for creating a clinch strategy to beat Dedduang and Dokmaipa
• The fighters of today who jump up on the ropes and showboat are impolite.
• "the heart of ant" means a fighter who is not courageous. 
• Namkabuan fought a fight vs two foreign fighters at once.
• How Wangchannoi (may have) tricked Namkabuan on the famous 33 second KO fight. He visited Namkabuan's house before the fight: "If we fight I will lose, take it easy on me". Wangchannoi and Nampol were drinking buddies.
• Lumpinee had to tighten the ropes for safety due to plowing.
• Arjan advocates for and advises on allowing Thai children being allowed to fight.
• On how Muay Thai was taken out of Thai school curriculum due to pressure from doctors.
• Karuhat says that fighters these days just have to be showmen for YouTube to become famous.
• Karuhat asks: How do we solve the problem of dancing off in the 5th round?
• Arjan has great concern about the future of Muay Thai in Thailand.

(sorry, the English transcript, which I usually include in posts like this, is not available to be published in this post, due to technical difficulties.)

As with all of these history interviews, the videos are for the Public and free for everyone, though they are made possible by your patron support, and the support of sponsors. So thank you everyone for making this kind of precious documentation possible. 

I've also posted my Namkabuan interview from the day before down below. And photos from the day that Kevin took. Below that you can watch my visit to the Hall of Fame in the Nongkipahayut gym, and some Arjan Pramod Instruction. And also a mini session I filmed with Namkabuan even before that, which was the first time I met him. 

Our work is building an oral history of what Muay Thai is, and what it has been. You can watch all my Interviews so far in this Patreon under the Legend's Speak tag here:

Watch my Interview with the legendary Namkabuan:

watch this interview here 

Watch my Muay Thai Library session with Arjan Pramod from a few years ago, teaching his old school techniques:

watch the Arjan Pramod Library session here 

watch my original session with Namkabuan, sharing his incredible knee style:

watch the session with Namkabuan here