Kambla—India Bulls

Some say that Kambla—or this sport with galloping bulls—originated in India about a thousand years back. Some don’t argue about the time, but suggest that it might have been transported from China, where it still evokes the same scale of passion as here in rural Karnataka. This sort of debate never ends, but we can safely conclude that Kambla is still very much a part of life in villages around Mangalore. It is believed that before sowing seeds at fields for a winter harvest, the land was used to get tilled by galloping hoofs. Sport once was just a soft justification of a greater cause. But as we have seen over time, the sheer joy of playing soft games makes them big. So, Kambla bulls are now reared at great cost, dedicated tracks are maintained throughout the year, and websites are posted with a ‘Kambla Calendar’ every January.