When Mohini Dahiya, 14, from the obscure Kaimri village in Haryana’s Hisar, first told her father about the southern Indian martial arts form, Kalaripayattu, a year ago, he was doubtful about his daughter pursuing it as a sport. “I couldn’t pronounce the word,” said Vinod Dahiya, an auto-rickshaw driver. He agreed because the costs involved in diet were much lower than wrestling, kabaddi, and boxing, the three most popular sports in Haryana.
Ms. Mohini missed winning a medal at the Khelo India Youth Games 2023 in Tamil Nadu, held between January 19 and 31, but won gold at a State-level event. “I enjoy the jumping and kicking involved,” she said. This year at the games, Haryana came second in Kalaripayattu, just after Kerala, in the boys category. They won four medals, including a gold for a high kick by Aryan Goyat, 17, from Kaithal.
Boys and girls in Haryana have taken to kalaripayattu, largely practised and trained in Kerala and Tamil Nadu and now treated as a sport, after its introduction to the Khelo India games in 2021, along with three other forms: gatka, mallakhamb, thang-ta.
