Meet the Gatka girls

Amarjot Kaur

Fierce and feisty, the warrior princesses of the city cross swords with one another, honing to perfection their skills in Gatka. Handling lethal weapons with razor-sharp precision, girls as young as seven years are taking to the Sikh martial art. Trained free-of-cost at gurdwaras and educational institutes, these girls have won several medals too.

Great determination

Though visually impaired and battling a brain tumour, Rashpal Kaur has showcased Gatka demonstrations on talent-hunt TV shows, like Dance India Dance, and performed in Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. A resident of Mundi Kharar, Rashpal draws inspiration from Mai Bhago, the first Sikh woman to have fought on the battlefield. “I saw a few boys practising Gatka at a gurdwara in Sector 34. ‘If they can do it, why can’t I,’ I asked myself,” says the 40-year-old.

Trained hand

A student at DAV College in Sector 10, Simranjit Singh (21), is a member and coach of Chandigarh Gatka Association (CGA), an affiliate of Gatka Federation of India (GFI). He trains girls at schools and colleges. “More than 90 women and girls are enrolled with our association,” he says.

A university-level Gatka champion for past three years, Simranjit says after GFI’s formation in 2008, the martial art stepped out of gurdwaras and nagar kirtans, and found a presence in national sports. “It is now played by trained players. Though almost all Gatka championships have male and female participants, there are over a dozen women-only gatka competitions.”

Rigorous exercise

Twenty-year-old Amandeep Kaur started playing Gatka in tenth standard and has won 22 medals since her first competition in 2013. Pursuing a Post-graduate Diploma in Computer Applications at GGDSD College, Sector 32, she claims to be the only woman in the city to have won these many competitions at her age. “I don’t just practise it for self-defence; it is a very rigorous exercise regime. People spend money at gyms or dance classes to lose weight; well, Gatka, does that too while building your core strength and stamina,” she says. She beams with joy while telling us about how gatka, as a national sport, got her a college admission under sports quota.

Coaching hand 

Having won the first prize at the recently held Gatka Premier League in Chattisgarh, Amandeep, a baptised Sikh, trains at an akhara in Gurudwara Shri Guru Teg Bahadur Sahib, Sector 34. Her coach, Kuljeet Singh, has earlier trained Rashpal. Kuljeet, 54, is a coach with Shiromani Gatka Federation of India (SGFI). “There’s no restriction on religion or gender, but players can’t cut their hair while training with us,” he says. 

Gatka, which Kuljeet believes is distinct by the virtue of being a Sikh martial art, holds a special place in his heart as a part of his religion’s history. “Gatka is unique to Sikhs. It has some rules too, like any other game. Bana (the traditional Gatka attire) and Bani (the guru’s teachings) go together,” he says. Unlike SGFI, GFI, which is affiliated to World Gatka Federation, allows its players to wear comfortable sportswear. 

National sport 

Since 2011, Kavita (22) has won 11 medals (seven gold) at national and state-level competitions. Born a Hindu, Kavita started training under CGA at an akhara in Gurdwara Asthapan Committee, Sector 22-D. “I took to gatka for self-defence. I tried fencing too, but Gatka is more challenging,” she says. A student of MA economics at Panjab University, Kavita now trains at Gurdwara Harcharan Kamal Sahib, Sector 49. 

She hails the advent of Gatka in national sports as an opportunity for non-Sikhs. “It’s played in many states, including Punjab, Haryana, Rajasthan, Bihar, UP, Maharashtra, Delhi, Gujarat, and J&K,” she says.

Amandeep says tournaments organised by SGFI are tougher. “International Gatka Cup, which is held at Fatehgarh Sahib in May every year, is the hardest.”

At present, 14 schools, nine colleges and 14 gurdwaras in tricity promote Gatka for women, according to Chandigarh Gatka Association.

Young champions

Sukhmani (7), a student at Sri Guru Harkrishan Senior Secondary School, Chandigarh, and Jasbani (9), who studies at Chitkara International School, practise at Gurudwara Shri Gurumat Parchar Sabha, Sector 41-B. They have won gold at National Gatka Championship (2016) and Inter Tricity Gatka Tournament (2017), and silver at Ik Onkaar National Gatka Cup (2016) and Ik Onkar National Gatka Cup (2017). “They are gifted,” says their coach, Inderjeet Singh.

Check out the tournaments

• Mai Bhago National Gatka Cup
• Ek Onkar National Gatka  Cup Seechewal Jalandhar
• Federation National for Girls
• Miri Piri Gatka  Cup for Girls
• Virsa Sambhal Gatka  Championship for Girls

Play the game

“The three-part game includes demonstration (individual or team-based), team fight and individual fight,” says CGA coach Simranjit Singh, adding that Gatka is a three-minute fight, divided in two rounds of 90 seconds each. “The player gets one point for touching the opponent’s lower body, two points for upper body and three points for back,” adds Kavita.

amarjot@tribunemail.com