Silambam
Silambam is promoted in Tamil Nadu by the rulers Pandya, Chola and Chera and the reference to the sale of Silambam staves, pearls, swords and armours can be seen in a Tamil literature ‘Silapaddigaram’. This art also travelled to Malaysia, where it is a famous sport apart from a self defence technique. For mock fighting and self-defence the long-staff technique is used. Infact, Lord Muruga and sage Agasthya are credited with the creation of Silambam. Even during Vedic age, training was imparted to young men as a ritual and for an emergency.
Gatka
Originating from the state of Punjab, Gatka is believed to be a battle technique created by Sikh warriors during the martial period of great Sikh Gurus. A style of stick fighting between two or more practitioners, Gatka is a toned-down version of the deadlier Shastar Vidya, the fighting style of the fearsome Akali Nihangs. There are many weapons used in Gatka like, Stick, Talwar, kirpan and kataar. The attacking and defense methods are based upon the positions of the hands feet and nature of weapons used.
The blue-turbaned sect of Sikh fighters banned by the British after the Anglo-Sikh wars. The sharp swords of Shastar Vidya have been replaced by wooden sticks (soti) and shields (farri) in Gatka. It is also displayed during the different celebrations or at fairs in Punjab.
Mardani Khel
Originated in Maharashtra, Mardani Khel is a weapon-based martial art form. It owes its development to the geographic conditions of the state like hills, caves and valleys. It is a very ancient form of art and saw its emergence during the Maratha dynasty. Kolhapur used to be the center of the Maratha kingdom and the villages around it had training centres, where skilled elders prepared youngsters for war.
After the revolt of 1857, the British banned the use of weapons and the training centres were forced to turn mardani khel into a folk game to ensure its survival. The use of weapons such as swords, katyar (dagger), lathi-kathi (bamboo sticks), veeta(darts), bhala (javelin), dand and patta (long-bladed swords) continued but the moves were made more stylised and less lethal.
Kushti
Kushti is a form of traditional wrestling, Kushti developed during the Mughal Empire by combining the native sport of malla-yuddha (combat wrestling) with influences from Persian varzesh-e bastani (warrior athletics). Interestingly, the words pehlwani and kushti derive from the Persian terms pahlavani and koshti respectively. Once a sport that used to hold great importance in Indian society, at present, Kushti is only practiced in a handful places around India.
Kolhapur is one city where the time-tested sport is as popular as ever with rural families frequently sending boys to learn the art at Kolhapur’s talims or akharas – traditional wrestling schools.
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