Warriors Gallery

Silambam Asia warriors gallery from ancient.

Silambam in India Warfare

The Bijapur Nawabs who held the fort from about 1660 to 1677 AD called it Badshabad, while the Marathas who succeeded them called it Chandry or Chindy. The Mughals, on their capture of the fort in 1698 A.D., named it Nusratgadh in honour of Nawab Zulfiqar Khan Nusrat-Jang, the commander-in-chief of the besieging army. Later, the English and the French called it Gingee or Jinji. The early Madras records of the English give the spelling Chingee or Chengey.

As per Tamil legend, the tragic tale of Raja Tej Singh, popularly known in Tamil as Thesingu Raasan, is associated with the fort. The true life story of Tej Singh and his general, Mehboob Khan (aka Maavuthukaran), who were friends, has inspired many poems, street plays, and countless other stories. He was the son of Swarup Singh and revolted against the Nawab of Arcot, and was defeated and killed in the war that followed. Though Gingee became a part of the Nawab's territory in 1714, the young and courageous Tej Singh became a legend and his life, love and brave but tragic end were eulogised in various ballads.

The soldiers of Kings Puli Thevar, Veerapandiya Kattabomman and Maruthu Pandiyar (1760–1799) relied mainly on their silambam prowess in their warfare against the British Army. Indian martial arts suffered a decline after the British colonists banned silambam along with various other systems. They also introduced modern western military training which favoured fire-arms over traditional weaponry. During this time, silambam became more common in Southeast Asia than its native India where it was banned by the British rulers. The ban was lifted after India achieved independence. Today, silambam is the most famous and widely practiced Indian martial art in Malaysia where demonstrations are held for cultural shows.

VEERAPANDIYA KATTABOMMAN
( Tamil: வீரபாண்டிய  கட்டபொம்மன் )

Veerapandiya Kattabomman (3 January 1760 - 16 October 1799) was an 18th century Palayakarrar ('Polygar') chieftain from Panchalankurichi of Tamil Nadu, India

MARUDHU PANDIYAR
( Tamil: மருது  பாண்டியர் )

Marudhu Pandiyar (1760-1799) brothers (Periya Marudhu and Chinna Marudhu) ruled Sivagangai, Tamil Nadu towards the end of the 18th century. The Marudhu brothers were the sons of Udayar Servai alias Mookiah Palaniappan Servai and Anandayer alias Ponnathal. Marudhu Pandiyar, the Elder was born on 15.12.1748 in a small hamlet called Narikkudi near Aruppukkottai in then Ramnad principal state (now Virudhunagar district). In 1753 the younger Marudhu Pandiyar was born in Ramnad. Their father "Udayar Servai" served as the General in the Ramnad state military and he shifted his family to Virudhunagar from Narikkudi.

PULI THEVAR
( Tamil: புலித்  தேவர் )

The soldiers of Kings Puli Thevar was a poligar (or palayakarar) who ruled Nerkattumseval situated in the Sankarankoil taluk of Tamil Nadu. Puli Thevar who belongs to the warrior Maravar community was one of the earliest freedom fighters. He is one of the first Indian kings to have fought and defeated the British in India.