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Where
Diwali is celebrated with cane fights!
Friday November 05, 2010 07:28:47 PM,
Asit Srivastava, IANS
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Lucknow:
As Diwali morning dawned Friday, young men armed themselves with 'lathis',
waving the canes in the air and charging at their opponents. No,
this wasn't a fight - but just how the festival is celebrated in
Uttar Pradesh's Banda district.
Called 'Lathmar Diwari', cane fights are a tradition in several
villages like Triveni, Amratpur Kherwa, Ghacha and Barokha Khurd
in Banda, some 200 km from Lucknow.
Armed with canes, the men assemble in the fields and constitute
different teams. Two teams, each comprising 18 members, play 'Lathmar
Diwari' and these entertaining fights go on till evening.
"It's an action-packed game that follows a set of rules and
regulations - like the canes used by two opponent teams should be
more or less of the same size and thickness," Suresh Richaria, a
32-year-old who has been participating in Lathmar Diwari for the
last five years, told IANS over telephone from Barokha Khurd
village.
"Teams involved in Lathmar Diwari undergo several months of
training...for us the 'lathmari' (cane fight) is part of Diwali
festivities, which also include the usual fireworks and lighting
diyas," he added.
According to locals, the foremost rule you have to keep in mind
while playing Lathmar Diwari is that you cannot be violent and
have to attack and shield yourself in a prescribed manner.
"If you don't follow the rules, you are disqualified and chances
are you won't be part of any team to play Lathmar Diwari for the
next few years," said Jai Narayan Sahu, a resident of Ghacha
village.
After every two hours, two new teams take the stage, replacing the
two previous teams. Unlike other competitions, team members don't
have to play for victory or defeat, as the entertainment of
villagers is the main purpose.
"We have team members of varied age groups...You could be a
50-year-old or a 10-year-old child. The only condition to be part
of a team is that the individual should be a male and physically
fit," said R.K. Pal, trainer of a Lathmar team in Barokha Khurd.
"It's not gender bias...The only reason for including males in a
team is the fact that they are physically stronger than women," he
added.
Locals say Lathmar Diwari is an age-old tradition in Banda and it
started as a mode of entertainment in villages.
"We don't know when exactly Lathmar Diwari started, but our
ancestors used to have cane fight competitions on a number of
occasions for entertaining villagers," said Hazarai Shivhare, a
65-year-old farmer in Amratpur Kherwa.
Incidentally, Uttar Pradesh also celebrates Lathmar Holi on the
festival of colours when women playfully hit men with canes!
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