Kalaripayattu and silambam: what is the difference
One is from Kerala, one from Tamil Nadu. Both start with the feet.
What is a kuzhi kalari
Why our training floor is four feet below the ground, and what the poothara is.
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Notes from Chuvadu Kalari Academy
Guides, care tips and stories from behind the counter.
Preparing for your first class
What to eat, what to wear and what the first ninety minutes look like.
Looking after your training staff
How to oil, store and check a kettukari or silambam staff so it stays straight and does not split.
Choosing the right batch for your child
Age, temperament and school timings: how we place children between seven and sixteen, and when they move up.
Training through Karkidakam, the monsoon month
Why the wettest weeks of the year have always been the season of training and oil in the kalari, and what changes in our batches.
Relaying the mud floor: a week in April
How we dig, beat and dry the kalari floor each summer, and why students are asked to help.
Kalari country: a day around Vadakara
Old kalaris, the ballads of Thacholi Othenan and a temple of the martial tradition, an hour north of Kozhikode.
Not like the films: common myths about kalaripayattu
Flying kicks, secret pressure points and instant results: what students expect, and what training is really like.
The women’s self-defence course: what to expect
Eight sessions with Anjali, week by week: what is taught, what to wear and how the classes feel.
Batch timings on WhatsApp.
New batches, demonstrations and holiday camps, once a month.