Harpal Singh Beniwal had pulled over his car.gatka About 10 years ago, I took classes. Now, though, he can be seen jumping blocks and spinning kicks in the park with his daughter.akhara — the practice ground.
Gatka Is a traditional form of martial arts that has been used by the Sikh people since the 17th century. It was first made to protect the community from invaders. It is a mix of self-defense techniques and acrobatics.
Done right, gatka The teachers say it is both fierce and beautiful.
Even though not many people in Canada do it, a gurdwara in Caledon, Ont. offers free classes every week to keep it going.Manroop Singh, agatka Instructor at the non-profit Khalsa Gurmat academy, told CBC Toronto that he started practicing the martial art 20 years ago when a teacher from India came to his childhood gurdwara—a place of worship for Sikhs.
Singh told CBC Toronto, “We were just little kids when he taught us.”
He said, “We want to build on that history and keep our history alive.”
Benniwal and his 11-year-old daughter, Anureet, now go to the academy to practice, spar, and spend time with each other.
Benniwal says that it has made his life much better.
“Life seemed to be missing something,gatka Helped me understand our culture and history better. I get to go to God’s house with my child, and that makes me happy,” Benniwal said.
The father and daughter team begangatka Anureet started taking martial arts classes more than two months ago, and he liked it right away. Now, because she wants to be the best, she goes to the gurdwara often. When her dad got hurt at work and had to miss a class, she kept training.
“He got stitches, and I came here by myself and learned more than him in two weeks. I like coming here with him so I can show him that I’ve gotten better “she told me.
Benniwal is hoping for more than just a father-daughter bond.gatka Will help Anureet defend herself if she needs to.
“She is my daughter. I worry about her, and she should be able to protect herself if she ever feels in danger “he said.
After the evening prayers, students between the ages of four and forty-five pick up their sticks, swords, and shields and start training. There are more than a hundred traditional weapons that are used ingatka, but most people use a stick made of wood when they practice.
The first step to learning is to want to.gatka Is to learn how to move your feet. The goal is to move quickly and deliberately, and to learn how to dodge. The basic ideas behind these movements are taught throughchaar-paerThis means that there are four steps.
“The first thing you need to do is learn thechaar-paer And learn how to move well. “The first step to defense is to practice until our moves are as natural as our breathing,” said Singh.
Singh and Jasdeep Singh teach students in the GTA. They have been doing this for over 13 years. They say that the main goal of the academy is to bring youth closer to their culture. They even moved from Malton to Caledon to make sure they could reach more kids.
Jasdeep Singh said, “Most parents want their kids to connect with the religion, learn about our [Sikh] heritage, and continue the lineage of where they come from, even in the west.”