Gatka

This is about the revival of the style associated with Sikhs in particular. For the general
meaning of the term, see Indian martial arts.

Gatka (Punjabi: ਗਤਕਾ Urdu: gatkā) is the name of an Indian martial art
Gatka
associated with the Sikhs of the Punjab region, and with the Tanoli(Pathan Tribe)
and Gujjar communities residing in mountainous regions of northern Pakistan
who practice (https://www.bbc.com/urdu/sport-47317035) an early variant of the
martial art. It is a style of stick fighting, with wooden sticks intended to simulate
swords.[1] The Punjabi name gatka properly refers to the wooden stick used. The
word originates as a diminutive of Sanskrit gada "mace".[2]

The style originated in later 19th century, out of sword practice in the British
Indian Army, divided in two sub-style, called rasmi (ritualistic) and khel (sport)
from the 1880s. There has been a revival during the later 20th century, with an Gatka demonstration in Bedford,
International Gatka Federation was founded in 1982 and formalized in 1987, and England (2007)
gatka is now popular as a sport or sword dance performance art and is often Focus Weaponry
shown during Sikh festivals.[3]
Country of Indian
origin subcontinent
Olympic sport No
Contents
History
Competition
See also
Notes
References

History
During the Indian Rebellion of 1857, the Sikhs assisted the British in crushing
the mutiny. As a consequence of this assistance, restrictions on fighting practices
were relaxed, but the Punjabi martial arts which re-emerged after 1857 had
changed significantly.[4] The new style applied the sword-fighting techniques to
the wooden training-stick. It was referred to as gatka, after its primary weapon.
Gatka was used mainly by the British Indian Army in the 1860s as practice for
hand-to-hand combat.

The Defendu system devised by Captain William Ewart Fairbairn and Captain
Eric Anthony Sykes borrowed methodologies from gatka, jujutsu, Chinese Singhs at World Gatka Cup
martial arts and "gutter fighting". This method was used to train soldiers in
close-combat techniques at the Commando Basic Training Centre in Achnacarry,
Scotland.[5]
Competition
Khel (meaning sport or game) is the modern competitive aspect of gatka, originally used as a method of sword-training (fari-
gatka) or stick-fighting (lathi khela) in medieval times.

While khel gatka is today most commonly associated with Sikhs, it has always been used in the martial arts of other ethno-
cultural groups. It is still practiced (https://www.bbc.com/urdu/sport-47317035) in India and Pakistan by the Tanoli and Gurjara
communities.

See also
Angampora
Banshay
Bataireacht
Bōjutsu
Gatka
Jūkendō
Kalaripayattu
Kendo
Kenjutsu
Krabi–krabong
Kuttu Varisai
Mardani khel
Shastar Vidya
Silambam
Silambam Asia
Tahtib
Thang-ta
Varma kalai
World Silambam Association
Hola Mohalla
Indian martial arts
Nihang
Pehlwani
Sqay

Notes

References
1. Donn F. Draeger and Robert W. Smith (1969). Comprehensive Asian Fighting Arts. Kodansha International
Limited.
2. Ananda Lal, The Oxford companion to Indian theatre, Oxford University Press (2004), ISBN 9780195644463, p.
129.
3. Sikh martial art `Gatka' takes the West by storm. (http://www.hindu.com/2006/07/27/stories/2006072712720300.h
tm) (Press Trust of India). The Hindu
4. [v MILITARY SIKHS: The Education of a Sikh Warrior. Victoria and Albert Museum.] 'An introduction to Shastar
Vidiya - the education of a Sikh warrior' was a lecture by Nidar Singh, given as part of the Sikh Arts and Heritage
Lecture Series at the V&A, 10 October 2001.
 5. O. Janson. Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting knife: The famous fightingknife used by British commandos and SOE during
WW2. Gothia Arms Historical Society

Nanak Dev Singh Khalsa & Sat Katar Kaur Ocasio-Khalsa (1991) Gatka as taught by Nanak Dev Singh, Book
One - Dance of the Sword (2nd Edition). GT International, Phoenix, Arizona. ISBN 0-89509-087-2

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