India, the land of diverse culture and ethnicities, is
known for its wide variety of martial arts that have developed since the ancient times. Martial arts literally means ‘arts associated with the waging of war’. Closely related to dance, yoga and performing arts. Some were banned during the British rule. Resurfaced and gained popularity post independence. TYPES Kalaripayattu Silambam Thang-ta and sarit sarak Cheibi gad-ga Pari-khanda Thoda Gatka Mardani khel Lathi Inbuan wrestling Kuttu varisai Musti yuddha Kalaripayattu Origin: Kerala Sage Parasurama, who built temples and introduced martial arts, started Kalaripayattu. Important keys: footwork, kicks, strikes and weapon based practice. Silambam Origin: Tamil Nadu A kind of staff fencing Used both for mock fighting and self defence Pure defense art combat exercise. Kind of techniques: swift movements of the foot, use of both hands to wield staff, use of thrust, cut, chop and sweep to achieve mastery and development of force, momentum and precision at different levels of the body (head, shoulder, hip and leg level). Silambam(cont…) Thang-Ta and Sarit Sarak Origin: Meitei people of Manipur. Thang-ta is an armed martial art that finds its mention in the most lethal combat forms. Sarit Sarak, on the other hand, is an unarmed art form that uses hand-to-hand combat. Thang refers to a ‘sword’, while Ta refers to a ‘spear’. Cheibi Gad-ga Origin: Manipur Cheibi Gad-ga involves fighting using a sword and a shield. It has now been modified to a stick encased in soft leather in place of a sword and a leather shield. The contest takes place in a circle of 7 metre diameter, on a flat surface. The points are given based on skills and brute force. Pari-khanda created by Rajputs, is a form of martial art from Bihar. Fighting using sword and shield. Still practiced in many parts of Bihar Its steps and techniques are widely used in Chhau dance. Pari’ that means shield while ‘khanda’ refers to sword. Thoda Himachal Pradesh Thoda is a mixture of martial arts, sport and culture. It takes place during Baisakhi (13th and 14th April) every year. The martial art relies on a player’s skill of archery. Two groups of roughly 500 people each. Most of these are not archers but dancers who come along to boost the morale of their respective teams. The game is played in a marked court so as to ensure a certain degree of discipline. The two teams are called Pashis and Saathis, who are believed to be the descendants of Pandavas and Kauravas of Mahabharata. The archers aim for the leg, below the knee, as there are negative points for striking any other parts of the body. Thoda(cont….) Gatka Weapon based martial art form, performed by the Sikhs of Punjab. The name ‘Gatka’ refers to the one whose freedom belongs to grace. Gatka features the skillful use of weapons, including stick, Kirpan, Talwar and Kataar. It is displayed on a number of celebrations in the state including fairs. Mardani Khel Traditional Maharashtrian armed martial art, which is practiced widely in the district of Kolhapur. Mardani Khel focuses primarily on skills of weaponry, especially swords, swift movements and use of low stances that is suited to its originating place, the hill ranges. It is known for the use of the unique Indian Pata (sword) and Vita (corded lance). Lathi One the world’s oldest weapons used in martial arts Lathi refers to a ‘stick’ (usually cane sticks), which is generally 6 to 8 feet in length and sometimes metal tipped. Indian police can be seen using such Lathis to control crowd. Majorly practiced in Punjab and Bengal, it still is one of the popular sport in villages of the country. Inbuan Wrestling A native martial art form of Mizoram It has very strict rules that prohibit stepping out of the circle, kicking and knee bending. The way to win this is by lifting the opponent off their feet, while stringently adhering to the rules. It also involves catching of the belt (worn around their waist) by the wrestlers. Inbuan wrestling(cont..) Kuttu Varisai First mentioned in Sangam literature (first or second century B.C.), Kuttu Varisai translates to ‘empty hand combat’. Kuttu Varisai is mainly practiced in Tamil Nadu, although it is quite popular in north-eastern part of Sri Lanka and Malaysia too. It is considered as an unarmed component of silambam. Musti Yuddha Originated in one of the oldest city of the country, Varanasi, Musti Yuddha is an unarmed martial art form resembling boxing. It used techniques like kicks, punches, knee and elbow strikes. Although rarely visible now, it was quite a popular art during 1960s. Musti Yuddha incorporated the development of all three aspects, physical, mental and spiritual. References INDIAN ART AND CULTURE by NITIN SINGHANIA 2nd edition. https://www.google.com/search?q=mardani+khel+martial+art&rlz=1C1GCEA_enIN870I N870&sxsrf=ACYBGNThdMctnE2i- Dz7CCXdmSEyHpe9fw:1574247298271&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjf5 IGY0PjlAhXRbn0KHbfsDs8Q_AUoA3oECA0QBQ&biw=1093&bih=461&dpr=1.25# https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwjZ2bqZ0_jlAhW UTX0KHQzfCEQQjRx6BAgBEAQ&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.quora.com%2FWhat- are-some-martial-arts-that-came-out-of-India&psig=AOvVaw18-Z8NnzhZ72V3QP-- Pi3z&ust=1574334484940175 https://www.google.com/url?sa=i&source=images&cd=&ved=2ahUKEwiAlcHc0_jlAhWY fysKHXq5D9AQjRx6BAgBEAQ&url=http%3A%2F%2Flrsailo.blogspot.com%2F2012%2F0 3%2Finbuan-mizo-wrestling-at-ne-games-2012.html&psig=AOvVaw18- Z8NnzhZ72V3QP--Pi3z&ust=1574334484940175 https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Ftelugu.cdn.zeenews.com%2F telugu%2Fsites%2Fdefault%2Ffiles%2Fstyles%2Fzm_700x400%2Fpublic%2F2018%2F07 %2F12%2F171354- ibenjaminfurrowsblogspot.png%3Fitok%3DCC10x43T&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fzeen ews.india.com%2Ftelugu%2Ftags%2Fkuttu- varisai&docid=o_NbvR5Em5l8kM&tbnid=DyxwMMyF3Xpv4M%3A&vet=10ahUKEwiq5Z yv1PjlAhXSpOkKHSlnDa8QMwhLKAswCw..i&w=700&h=400&bih=461&biw=1093&q=ku ttu%20varasai%20&ved=0ahUKEwiq5Zyv1PjlAhXSpOkKHSlnDa8QMwhLKAswCw&iact =mrc&uact=8 References(cont…) https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.indianetzone.com%2F photos_gallery%2F48%2FMusti_Yuddha_Indian_martial_art.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A% 2F%2Fwww.indianetzone.com%2F57%2Fmusti_yuddha.htm&docid=VPDtU7LJF2MdCM &tbnid=pAuzhqdRy4F6XM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwiLw- Cr1fjlAhVvzTgGHeerD7kQMwhRKAIwAg..i&w=357&h=300&bih=461&biw=1093&q=must i%20yuddha&ved=0ahUKEwiLw- Cr1fjlAhVvzTgGHeerD7kQMwhRKAIwAg&iact=mrc&uact=8 https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fpolkacafe.s3.amazonaws.co m%2Farticles%2Fthumbs%2Fti_725_1942.4990462341.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2F www.kapchertravels.com%2Fauthor%2Fskumar%2Fpage%2F4%2F&docid=TWsTg9te66 BvFM&tbnid=Oe-_1lY5gANRAM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwiLw- Cr1fjlAhVvzTgGHeerD7kQMwh- KCIwIg..i&w=725&h=470&bih=461&biw=1093&q=musti%20yuddha&ved=0ahUKEwiLw- Cr1fjlAhVvzTgGHeerD7kQMwh-KCIwIg&iact=mrc&uact=8 https://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=https%3A%2F%2Fmartialask.com%2Fwp- content%2Fuploads%2F2017%2F12%2FMALLA-YUDDHA- INDIA.jpg&imgrefurl=https%3A%2F%2Fmartialask.com%2Fmalla-yuddha- india%2F&docid=Tbmx9eCVWElFkM&tbnid=0ZvvrkgVCF5_fM%3A&vet=10ahUKEwiL4 tKo1vjlAhVqzjgGHXOqDUsQMwhOKAIwAg..i&w=690&h=518&bih=461&biw=1093&q=m alla%20yuddha&ved=0ahUKEwiL4tKo1vjlAhVqzjgGHXOqDUsQMwhOKAIwAg&iact=m rc&uact=8 THANK YOU