About Us

Tora was first established in the early 90s by Simon Hengle as a Martial Arts Club specialising in Kick and Thai Boxing.

Simon began training in Martial Arts when he was 10 years old, and by the time he was in his early thirties, he was a top instructor with a 6th Dan and WKA Gold bar in Kickboxing, a 3rd Dan in Karate and a 1st Dan in Taekwondo and holds a 7th Dan under Bill 'Superfoot' Wallace and an 8th Dan with Commonwealth Martial Arts.

From a young age, Simon also became interested in the Kukri and the Japanese Sword. This was mainly due to stories told to him by relatives and friends of his father who served with the Gurkhas and who fought the Japanese during World War I and World War II.

With his Martial Arts background, it was only a matter of time before Simon began to combine the sport he loved, with his favourite weapons, the Kukri and the Japanese Sword and as a result “Combat Kickboxing” (Simon's own style) was formed!

In 1998, Tora Kukri Supplies was born after Simon received a small batch of kukri from one of the leading Khukuri companies in Nepal. So disappointing was the quality of the blades received, that Simon made it his personal challenge to get the kukri made to the quality for which he remembered, and for which they were renowned.

It took Simon until 2005 to start to achieve this, but after various trips to Nepal, many phone calls and hundreds of emails, we are finally there. Ironically, the first kukri that Tora’s kami made as per the originals was Tora’s Gorkha Army Kukri, the same Kukri used by King Prithvi Narayan Shah and his Goorkha to conquer and form Nepal as we know it today! We are also proud to say that Tora is producing the most authentic reproductions of both the old military and civilian kukri made throughout Nepal and India.

In 2009 and during Simon's most recent trip to Nepal, which was primarily to visit the famous Gurkha Officer and author Lt. Col. JP Cross we also came across Chandra Tamang (an ex-Indian Gorkha) who acted as our guide. He took us to a local kami in the Pokhara area, who made good rough and ready kukri, Khuda and various other blades used by the people in the area.

Simon decided it was time to register Tora in Nepal (Tora Nepal Enterprises). Under Nepalese law, this had to be done by a Nepalese citizen. This was done by Ravi a long-standing friend who had recently returned from Doha and needed to be able to support his family. Ravi now manages Tora's interests in Nepal.

In 2016, we opened a second factory and developed the KTM Range. Tora continues to grow from strength to strength and we look forward to providing you with new and exciting models.

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