Cholitas Bravas: Part 1

My Cholita brava series consists of 3 parts. 1. Cholitas Luchadoras (Wrestling cholitas) 2. Cholitas Escaladoras (Hiking Cholitas) 3. Cholitas Skaters. Today, I bring you the Cholitas Luchadoras. Here’s a little story behind the photos.

I’ve always admired daring and brave women. Then I found out that there are indigenous women in Bolivia doing brave things while embracing their roots. These Cholitas, proudly wear traditional clothing to break ethnic barriers. Being from Peru, a neighbor country where we have similar backgrounds; this hit a weak spot in my heart. I had to plan, meet and capture all these ladies. And guess who I brought with me? The bravest woman I know, my mom. She immediately said yes to this adventure.

We stayed in La Paz and our first stop was in El Alto, Bolivia. El Alto (the Heights) has an elevation of 14,000 feet. We didn’t feel it too much until we started walking. The wrestling show was going to start at 5pm and I had to be there at 4pm. The lady that was picking us up was late so we got there at 4:30pm. I had 30 minutes to capture the Cholitas before the show started.

I was late, It was cloudy (I like sunshine for my photos) and I didn’t know where I was going to shoot. Not the ideal scenario but what I do know is that I always make it work. I met Rosario and Maria Jose, two Cholitas Luchadoras performing that night. I was so happy to finally be there with them. They told me that they both started to wrestle when they were 14 years old, and they’re both 20 now. The skills, discipline and love for wrestling was passed down to her from older generations. This older generation had suffered from domestic violence, and started to wrestle in the mid 2000s to regain empowerment, break stereotypes and make new friends. It’s now one of the most popular shows in El Alto, Bolivia. Here are some portraits of them, behind the scenes (Thanks to my mama) and some photos of the wrestling show.