The Angampora martial art is the best example that Sri Lanka had in the past. It is said in history that South Indian fighters have also received training from Sri Lankan masters who engaged in this martial art.
This martial art, which was known as Hela Haramba, Sinhala play, is now popularly known as Angampora martial art.
Angampora martial artists were a big headache for the British in making Sri Lanka their colony. So after they conquered Sri Lanka they banned Angampora martial art.
Such a martial art has been passed down from generation to generation and has reached the point of extinction today. One of the reasons is that the youth are not involved in this martial art. The second is the introduction of some of the fighting techniques of this martial art with other self-defense fighting methods as Angampora fighting.
In this kind of background, we met a martial arts instructor who strives to pass on this Angampora martial art inherited from his father's generation to the future youth without combining it with any other martial arts. He is Juan Hetty's Chamira Fernando.
"My father is Juan Hettige Gretion Fernando. He lived in Katubedda area of Moratuwa and everyone called him Gretion Master. My grandfather is Juan Hettyge Leon Fernando. He is the one who inherited Angampora martial art to our generation. My grandfather taught this martial art to Sri Lanka in the late 1800s. A priest named Kumaraswamy, who came from Malabar, said that this is our martial art.
This martial art was taught by my father and grandfather Juan Hetty's Billin Bernard Fernando aka Bernard Master. The night I was admitted to school in 1977, my father started teaching me the martial art of Angampora. Since then I have mastered all these martial arts.
This is not a self defense martial art. A martial art. So here's the hands and arms. There are many techniques such as gatta pootu, chata tala etc. Here marching rhythm is a marching technique used to defeat the enemy. There they teach how to deceive the enemy. The travel methods used by the tiger in its hunt have been used for these travel rhythms.
Here you have to learn deep fighting techniques like how to use weapons and how to defeat the enemy. Therefore, this is not a martial art that can be mastered in a few months. At least three years should be studied. It requires patience and dedication. So I am trying to teach this martial art to at least four young people and pass it on to future generations through them. Chamira said explaining her purpose.
Is there no interest among the youth to learn this martial art?
Nowadays, many young people want to learn a showy martial art in a very short time. Therefore, they learn self-defense fighting methods that combine different fighting methods called Angampora. Therefore, I am asking you to unite to preserve the correct martial art of Angampora. For that, we are ready to teach anyone the complete Angampora martial arts learned from our generation.
In the past, the TV drama Dadubasnamanana made an impact in making Angampora martial art popular among the youth. But through that popularity, the whole martial art did not reach the youth.
Therefore, I am currently conducting workshops at the school level and trying to give children knowledge about Angampora martial arts. My son is also currently learning Angampora martial arts. It makes me happy. This is our Sinhala heritage. I think it would be a great crime if it were buried after us. Chamira finally said.
If there is a group of young people who are interested in getting some knowledge from this Angampora martial artist and teacher consultant who is trying to preserve our Hela martial art,
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