A birthday, they say, makes you older and wiser. But in the case of India’s star boxer Vijender Singh, it has made him bolder and wiser. The Beijing Olympics bronze medal-winning pugilist turned 28 yesterday, and as he blew out those candles he also hoped that the clouds of doubt hovering in the minds of his fans due to a doping scandal that engulfed his life some months ago, quickly disappear.

Vijender Singh during a promotional event at a city gym