Forty-year-old Suchithra R. from Thathampally in Alappuzha learned the first lessons of the traditional martial art form Kalaripayattu from her young son Neelakandan Nair.
Last week, the mother-son duo accomplished a unique feat when they won gold medals in different categories at the State Kalaripayattu Championship 2023-24 organised by the Sports Kalaripayattu Association and the Kerala State Youth Welfare Board in Thiruvananthapuram. While Ms. Suchithra won the medal in the Kaipporu (hand fight, super senior women) event, Neelakandan bagged the top prize in the Neduvadi Payatt (long stick fight, boys) event. He also bagged a bronze medal in Vadi Veeshu (stick rotation, boys).
Neelakandan, 12, was introduced to Kalaripayattu at the age of six. Last year, his father Mahesh Kumar, an ex-serviceman, allowed Deepalika Kalari to set up a branch on the premises of his family home to provide better training to Neelakandan and other children, but it proved to be a major “turning point.”
A challenge
“After quitting the job as a computer teacher, I was mostly confined to home when the Kalari academy began functioning. Some of my friends, including Soorya J., who came for the inauguration of the academy expressed their willingness to learn Kalaripayattu. Thus began my Kalaripayattu adventure. When I began training last year, age was not on my side and I found it difficult to learn the techniques in the initial phase. But my son, other experienced students at the academy, and Komalan Gurukkal (senior trainer) helped me overcome the challenges,” says Ms. Suchithra, who is also a baker.
Ms. Suchithra and Ms. Soorya, the latter from Vadackal in Alappuzha, are “long-time friends.” Ms. Soorya also bagged a gold medal in the Kaipporu event at the State championship.
More than 50 people are being trained at the academy, including 16 women aged between 30 and 54.
Neelankandan, a Class VII student of Carmel Academy Higher Secondary School, Pazhavangadi in Alappuzha, is looking forward to making his mark at the upcoming Kalaripayattu National Championship. His nine-year-old sister Vaishnavi Nair too trains at the academy and has participated in the Kalaripayattu district championship.
