Jallikattu, which is bull-baiting or bull fighting, is an ancient Tamilian tradition, popular amongst warriors during the Tamil classical period. According to legend, in olden days the game was used by women to choose their husbands. Successful "matadors" were chosen as grooms.
The term Jallikattu comes from the term "Salli" kassu (coins) and "Kattu" (meaning a package) tied to the horns of the bulls as the prize money. Later days during the colonial period this term got changed to Jallikattu which is the term currently used. Usually the majestic Kangeyam bull is involved in this game, as they are naturally more ferocious and muscular than any other of its species.
Famous Jallikattu locations include:
- Alanganallur
- Avaniapuram
- Tiruvapur near Pudukottai
- Kondalaampatti, Thammampatti in Salem, Tamil Nadu
- Palemedu near Madurai
- Sravayal near Karaikudi
- Kanduppatti near Sivagangai
- Venthanpatti near Ponnamaravathy, Pudukottai (Dist)
- Pallavarayanpatty near Cumbum
Unlike in bullfighting, the matador does not kill the bull. There are rarely any casualties suffered by the bulls. Several animal activists object to this dangerous game every year, but so far these objections have been in vain.
There are several rock paintings, more than 3,500 years old, at remote Karikkiyur village in the Nilgiris district in Tamil Nadu that show men chasing bulls. Kaikkiyur, situated about 40 km from Kotagiri town, is the biggest rock art site in south India. The rock surface site, teeming with more than 500 paintings, was discovered in 2004.
Another single painting discovered in a cave at Kalluthu Mettupatti, about 35 km west of Madurai, between Madurai and Dindigul, shows a lone man trying to control a bull. Archaeologists estimated that this painting, done in white kaolin, is about 1,500 years old.
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