Kalaripayattu
Kerala's ancient martial art — kicks, weapons and pressure-point strikes trained in a mud-floored kalari.
👥1 per team🌤indoor
What is Kalaripayattu?
Kalaripayattu is a comprehensive martial system from Kerala thought to be one of the oldest still practised. Training progresses through unarmed forms (meithari), wooden weapons (kolthari), metal weapons like the urumi flexible sword (angathari), and pressure-point techniques (verumkai). Sessions are held in a mud-floored pit called a kalari.
Quick facts
Category
Combat Sports
Type
Individual
Players
1 per team
Where played
indoor
Country of origin
🇮🇳 India
Estimated origin
Ancient Kerala, India (>3,000 years)
Olympic
No
Popularity
regional
Sources & provenance
Last verified 2026-08-20.verified