The Hindu :: Be Tough, Stay Safe

Expect trouble. So, you’re alert on dark streets and deserted subways? But what about cheerful shopping malls? Or friendly coffee shops? Or happening beach parties?

Ashwin Mohan, dynamic instructor of the GITT (Give It To Them) movement, emphasises that you have to be alert, everywhere. All the time. A date rape drug doesn’t have to be slipped into your drink at a nightclub, he says, adding flatly that it can just as easily be dropped into your filter coffee at a local dosa joint.

Under the women’s development forum, Asthtva, (A unit of Paradigm Shift, ph: 98848 19816, 98848 19818), Ashwin has held a series of workshops with GITT, teaching about 10,000 women around India self defence over the past five years. The programme is about common sense, self-awareness and staying alert: minor details that might just end up saving your life.

Today, being fit, able to kick-box or neatly knee an over-enthusiastic Lothario has become an essential life-skill for every woman. Rapes, acid attacks, kidnapping, mugging and sexual harassment happen regularly. And in the big cities, people have even started carrying weapons, ranging from guns to knives, making your nervously brandished pepper spray as effective as threatening a burglar with a kitten.

“Not all criminals look like criminals. Some look like Harry Potter,” says Ashwin, emphasising on how important it is to not be too trusting or naïve. “It’s a drawback in our educational system,” says Delhi-based Vicky Kapoor, Head of Krav Maga India (098104 12442), which teaches the aggressive martial art originally developed by the Israeli military. Discussing how girls are taught to behave like ladies, he says, “They are not allowed to play with boys and told they’re weak. We should teach school girls soccer to build the stamina and aggression they need in crowds, markets, buses…”

Tabrez, who teaches Aikido at Fitness One feels women should learn how to manipulate their attacker’s force rather than try and overcome it with traditional martial art moves. “Rowdies also know the kicks and punches,” he says, adding, “Aikido has no punches, no kicks.

Krav Maga, based on natural human reflexes and instincts, on the other hand, requires aggression. “Well, definitely if someone slaps me he or she is not my friend. The idea is to eliminate this behaviour,” says Kapoor, stating that the bottom line is “Fight. Save yourself and family. Then run. While traditional martial arts work with defined rules, Krav Maga has no restrictions. “You can hit anyone anywhere.”

Their defence classes consist of groups separated into ‘Attackers’ and ‘Defenders.’ After basic training, the Defenders walk through a building in which the Attackers hide, and pounce. “We need to keep as close to reality as possible, or women will freeze outside,” states Kapoor.

Ashwin’s answer is a set of moves — falls, kicks, ducks and free running — which he insists his students practise everyday for 21 days. “It then becomes a habit,” he says, adding it makes women more aware, alert and fit. He, however, opposes challenging your attacker. “Nobody’s going to say sorry. Don’t look for moral victories,” he says. “Hurt his body, but don’t mess with his ego, or he’ll be waiting for you the next day with acid.”

Women, he concludes, should use their mental strength. “If someone picks you up, pretend you’re having a heart attack,” he says, adding, “Men only know how to bash people. Girls can mess with a man’s mind.”

SHONALI MUTHALALY

MYCATPRESS

Other Related Posts

• The Hindu :: Be Tough, Stay Safe (1)
• Times of India :: Women Besieged: How to Make It a Safer World for Women (0)
• The Telegraph :: Contact Combat (3)
• The Hindu :: Get Street Smart! (1)
• Live Mint Magazine :: Fighting Terror the Krav Maga Way (0)