ID | 157869 |
Title Proper | Manly Sikhs and Loyal Citizens |
Other Title Information | Physical Education and Sport in Khalsa College, Amritsar, 1914–47 |
Language | ENG |
Author | Brunner, Michael Philipp |
Summary / Abstract (Note) | This article looks at Khalsa College, the first college specifically aimed at the Sikh community in late colonial India, and its schemes for and ideals of physical culture. Despite Sikh communal and Indian national aspirations, as well as a robust transnational discourse on ‘scientific’ physical culture that was being increasingly articulated in the inter-war period, Khalsa College remained remarkably devoted to ‘modernised’ physical exercise schemes focusing on British ‘manly games’ such as football, hockey and cricket. The essay locates the reasons behind the college management's staunch loyalty to Britain and opposition to newer, radical Sikh politics; its use of images of Sikh military traditions and ‘martial manliness’, often used to demarcate Sikhism from an ‘effeminate’ Hinduism; and its specific interest—shared by the colonial authorities—in keeping the students fit for military service. |
`In' analytical Note | South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies Vol. 41, No.1; Mar 2018: p.33-50 |
Journal Source | South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies 2018-03 41, 1 |
Key Words | Sikhism ; Punjab ; Sports ; Sikhs ; Masculinity ; Boy Scouts ; Physical Education ; Martial Races ; Colonial Education ; Khalsa College |