President Draupadi Murmu on Monday honored 66 personalities with Padma awards. During this, K. of Puducherry was awarded Padma Shri. Pazhanivel prostrated before Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after which this incident remained in the news. Let us tell you that the famous Silambam Guru Pazhanivel of Puducherry has been awarded the Padmashree award for his significant contribution to traditional martial arts in the country.
As soon as Silambam Guru Pazhanivel was called for the award in the ceremony organized at Rashtrapati Bhavan. Before receiving the honour, he bowed to PM Modi in a prostrate (lying on the ground) posture. Seeing this, PM Modi immediately came forward and picked him up and held his hand. After this Pazhanivel moved towards the President. Here he touched the feet of the President and then received the Padma Shri award.
#WATCH | Silambam exponent K. Pajanivel of Puducherry conferred with the Padma Shri for his contribution in the field of traditional martial arts. pic.twitter.com/Sviqc6BPZm
— ANI (@ANI) May 25, 2026
Who is K? Pazhanivel?
Awarded with Padma Shri. Pazhanivel was born on 30 January 1973 in Puranankuppam, Puducherry. Pazhanivel started Silambam under the guidance of Master Rajaram. After which, in his career spanning several decades, he has played an important role in the preservation, promotion and spread of this ancient Tamil martial art from India to abroad.
Pazhanivel has trained many students free of charge, ensuring that this traditional art continues to be passed on to the next generation. Apart from this he also represented Silambam through demonstrations, presentations and competitions at national and international forums.
Earlier, Pajanivel was honored with the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 2023. Kalaimamani Award was given by the Puducherry Government in 2012, Best Youth Award by Nehru Yuva Kendra in 2004 and Silambam International Award in 2002.
On receiving the Padma Shri award. Pazhanivel said that he considers this honor as an encouragement to take Tamil heritage to the world level for more than four decades. He said that Silambam should also be taught in schools.
What is Silambam?
Silambam is an ancient and traditional martial art of Tamil Nadu. Its origin is considered to be about 5,000 years old. The word Silambam is made up of two Tamil words, Silam (mountain) and Baam (bamboo). In this, a special type of flexible bamboo stick (laathi) is used as the main weapon.
It is also mentioned in ancient Tamil Sangam literature (2nd century BC). It has been used for self-defense and warfare since the time of Chola, Chera and Pandya kings. In this, fast swinging of the stick, acrobatics in the air and extremely agile foot movements are used. Many of its techniques are inspired by the movements of animals, such as snakes, monkeys and eagles.
Apart from bamboo sticks, in Silambam, training is also given in weapons like sword, dagger, shield and ‘Aruva’ (sickle). Tamil kings like Veerapandiya Kattabomman used it against the British during the war of independence. Fearing this, the British banned its practice at the end of the 18th century.
Leave a Reply