Caste and the sporting status quo

Sport, historically, evolved as a substitute for war. Chariots used in war would be used for racing as sport. In ancient Greece, the Olympics games were closely associated with the development of the state and warfare between states. In the sporting arena, gladiators – either prisoners of war or criminalised slaves – fought to the death in front of spectators. Early sport was controlled war in a public place: permissible violence, staged within a certain demarcated boundary, unfolded under the gaze of the state, king or some form of authority.

The linkages between war and combative sport in the Subcontinent are strong. In India, when ultra-nationalist and revisionist historians celebrate 'ancient' sport such as kushti, malla-yuddha or pehlwani – forms of combat wrestling in which the mythological Bhima and Duryodhana participate – they are primarily referring to martial arts. Even in the southern part of the Subcontinent, kalarippayattu (prevalent in parts of present-day Kerala and Karnataka) and varma adi (in present-day Tamil Nadu) are martial-art forms that double up as medical practices, since they emphasise understanding of the 'vital spots', and also pass for sport. Kabaddi, a popular sport in the Punjab that also finds mention in ancient Tamil culture as sadugudu, is another combative team game that entails a great deal of group physical contact.