As much as I try to, it’s rare for me to be in a place at a time when they have a festival going on. I’ve tried planning trips to Arunachal Pradesh for several Ziro Festivals, to Varanasi for Dev Diwali, and even to Kerala during Onam. But it was never to be.. at least not yet.

This February, I planned to be in Punjab and was charting a tentative route around the state just a week before I was to travel. And it was then that I chanced upon the Kila Raipur Games.

It seemed serendipitous, but I’m not really into sports and just put it on the back burner until the day I was to travel to Kila Raipur. I had just finished breakfast at my hotel in Anandpur Sahib and was to depart for my next destination in Punjab, Kila Raipur, when I thought it was a good time to finally figure out my itinerary for the day. “Let’s just wing it,” we thought, as we normally do, – “and swing by the rural Olympics”

HOW TO GET TO KILA RAIPUR

From Anandpur Sahib, Kila Raipur is around a 2-hour drive, but from anywhere else in India, the city you have to make your way to is Ludhiana. You can either fly into Ludhiana or take a bus (if you’re traveling from Delhi). Once in Ludhiana, make your way to Dehlon, the closest little town that is on the highway, either by taxi or by bus. From Dehlon, get a rickshaw to Kila Raipur’s Sports Ground. I usually travel by self-drive car. From Ludhiana, it is around a 30-min drive to Kila Raipur.

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WHERE TO STAY IN KILA RAIPUR

Being a little village, Kila Raipur barely has any hotels to stay at – and as mine was a pretty last-minute plan, I didn’t have time to look for accommodation. Locals say that there are hotels in Dehlon, but I couldn’t find any. Fun fact – marriage halls / banquet halls are called ‘resorts’ in Punjab. So if you stop by a resort, expecting a room, you’ll be mistaken.

I chose to stay in Ludhiana where you will find hundreds of hotels at varying budgets, however, the downside is that if you don’t have your own vehicle, you will have to do the 45-min commute to and from the Kila Raipur stadium every day if you wish to attend more than one day at the Rural Olympics. I stayed at The Bell Hotel, Ludhiana, which was clean and comfortable – good enough for a night’s stay.

Everything you need to know about the Kila Raipur Games

The Kila Raipur Games began in 1933 by philanthropist Inder Singh Grewal who thought it would be a nice idea to group together farmers from rural areas every year to match their physical strength and endurance. The aim, more than winning prizes and money, was and still is to promote the importance of a healthy mind in a healthy body. So from the young and able to children, the elderly, veterans, and differently-abled, everyone comes together to compete and make their village and families proud.

While the dates differ every year, the Kila Raipur Games happen in February (usually in the first week), and this was the 83rd edition. Over the decades, the Rural Olympics have evolved while still retaining its essence, today, it is not just a rural sports event but also a beautiful melange of Punjabi heritage, culture & machismo.

Simultaneously, it is the biggest sporting event held in a rural setting on the outskirts of Ludhiana, Punjab. From athletic events such as races and tug of war to games like Kabbadi and hockey, this 3-day sporting event has it all. Unlike the usual Olympics, this one has events like air pistol shooting, kite flying, racing while standing on the backs of two horses, races for 90-year-olds, pulling heavy vehicles with the hair, motorcycle acrobatics, tire races, cultural performances and so much more.

What’s great about it is that while the sporting event is superbly organized, it has the informality and the rural charm of sitting around the stadium on the grass, going in and out ticketless, and enjoying a simple village experience. On one hand, there are security forces to keep people in check if things escalate – and on the other, Nihangis (a part of the Khalsa who don blue robes). Also interesting is that the event has remained relatively free from corporate sponsorship with only 2-3 big brands having hoardings and finding mention in announcements at the event, so it’s not commercial/mainstream yet – although it should definitely be reported about in the media. After all, it is from rural India where India’s finest sportsmen have always emerged, bringing glory to the country at sporting events on a global level. Strangely, there was little to no coverage for an event which is a stepping stone for athletes, like this.

On the microphone, the presenter drones on about the various donations they’ve received from Punajbis living abroad and the names of some who’ve traveled (from Canada, obviously) specifically to be a part of the event. Sportsmen and teams visit from all parts of Punjab, Haryana, and the rural parts of other states, all trying to outdo one another. While I didn’t understand the rules of most games that were played, or the excited announcer who narrated the happenings seemingly without taking a breath, it was thrilling to watch nonetheless as the excitement among spectators cheering for their village sportsmen was palpable.

Outside the stadium, the village gives you a glimpse of rural and rustic Punjab. A few stalls selling lassi, sugarcane juice, local berries, spicy chole kulchey, hot jalebis, and puris. And a little further, endless fields of green stalks of wheat and yellow mustard flowers, the tiny lanes dotted with courtyards full of cow dung cakes left to dry, bullock/horse carts plying with piles of hay… and by the sides of the roads,  groups of elderly people exchanging news for the day.

Whether you’ve come to Kila Raipur for sports, culture, or photography, you’ll leave with your agenda complete!. It’s quirky, it’s exotic, colorful, and even a little bizarre  Definitely, a one-of-a-kind experience and I’m so glad to have made it in time to catch two days of it.

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