From Warfare to Sport - Institutionalisation of Archery
The Kurichiyan were experts in archery. Logan (1887) explained the archery skills of the Kurichiyan and mentionedthe link the community had with Pazhassi Raja. They served in the army of Pazhassi Raja as bowmen while fighting guerrilla warfare against the British.
It was because of the Kurichiyan Pazhassi Raja survived and continued his battle against the East India Company. The Kurichiyan revolt of 1812 showed the way they were organised to fight bravely against the policies of Britishers. They challenged the British supremacy in Wayanad and continued their struggle even after the death of Pazhassi in 1805. The fight was against the land taxes and land grabbing activities of the British. The life and property of the tribal people including the introduction of restrictions in revenue administration were threatened by the British soldiers of the Company. The agricultural products of the Kurichiyan were destructed by the Company's revenue officers and the government decided to seize their agricultural land. This resulted in a rebellion against the colonial government in 1812. The Kurichiyan were skilled and expert archers; and they fought courageously against the British.According to the Kurichiyan informants in Mananthavady thaluk, in the olden days, they used bows and arrows as weapons of security. The large acres of land owned by them often faced attacks from wild animals and robbers. So, the self-made bows and arrows were trusty weapons for self-defence and also used for protection from the attack of wild animals. The religious significance of archery is associated with hunting, especially the ceremonial hunting which initiates the hunting season. They strongly emphasised that the frequent use of bow and arrow for ritual hunting made them good archers which helped to assist Pazhassi Raja during the revolt in 1812. Now hunting has been banned by the state government and archery became an item in sports. It is seen that KIRTADS (Kerala Institute for Research Training and Development Studies of Scheduled and Scheduled Castes), is organising an archery competition every year in the name of Sri Thalakkal Chandu, who was an archer and commander-in-chief of the Kurichiyan soldiers of the Pazhassi Raja who fought British forces in Wayanad during the first decade of the 19th century. Now, archery has been institutionalised as a sport among the Kurichiyan. Families who can afford the cost of archery training used to send their children for training in order to participate in competitions. However, the bows and arrows were maintained by the Kurichiyan with utmost respect.
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