Kalari Panicker

Kalari Panicker / Kalari Kurup is an ethnic group belonging to the Hindu religion, who live in the Malabar (North Kerala)[1] and central parts of the Indian state of Kerala.[2] They were known as the masters of Kalari tradition, having their Nalpatheeradi Kalari (a name derived from its area of 42 x 21 feet).[citation needed] They are the people who propagated and practiced Kalaripayattu, the martial art form of Kerala. The National Commission of Backward Classes lists Kalari Kurup or Kalari Panicker under the list of OBCs.[3]

The titles Kurup and Panicker are prevalent in several other communities in Kerala, e.g. Nair Kurup (Illam or Kiriyam Nair) and Panicker who belong to the Nair community, and should not be confused with Kalari Panicker or Kalari Kurup, they have distinct identities.[2]

  1. ^ Menon, Indudharan (2018-12-18). Hereditary Physicians of Kerala: Traditional Medicine and Ayurveda in Modern India. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 978-0-429-66312-3.
  2. ^ a b Bahadur), L. Krishna Anantha Krishna Iyer (Diwan (1912). The Cochin Tribes and Castes ... government of Cochin.
  3. ^ "National Commission for Backward Classes".