Kambala

Kambala is a traditional buffalo race which is held in rural areas of Karnataka during the winter. Teams from different villages gather and race pairs of bulls down a 180m long track filled with several inches of muddy water. The racing lasts from early morning until well into the night, as the villagers compete in knock out rounds for a prize of gold. After spotting a poster for Kambala a few weeks ago, I had been looking out for an opportunity to go along.

 

The floodlit track and the Ghats in the background

Our local Kambala took place on the first Sunday of December, in an open field at the foot of the Charmadi Ghat mountain range. Many tents were set up in the field, and at the far end there was a strip of floodlights and large crowd. Every few minutes a shower of mud was sprayed high above the crowd as the bulls and driver tore down the track, a bit like drag racing with buffalo.

  

Pairs of buffalo and a driver will race down 180m long parallel tracks in several inches of muddy water

The marshalling area was chaotic, and false starts were common. Four or five members of each team would hold back the powerful, oiled buffalo at the start line until the starter dropped his outstretched arm. 

There are two types of Kambala. The first is a simple race between teams down the length of the track. The second event is mud spraying! The buffalo driver will stand on a small board which is pulled along by a pair of bulls, spraying mud high into the air as he surfs along the track.

Each team was dressed in brightly coloured matching polo shirts and head bands. I was told that over 100 teams were taking part at this event.

The white banners above the track are used to judge mud spraying event

I think I spotted a bookie taking bets on the races.

Two teams charging down the track. Runs lasted less than 20 seconds and were accompanied by the sound of the buffalo feet splashing in the water and the yells of the driver.

We stayed to watch the races for about an hour. During this time, it was apparently announced over the loudspeaker that "we have a visitor" and "could someone please tell him what is going on", after which a local called Ravi approached me and asked if I had any questions! I learnt that over 100 teams were taking part, and that the grand prize was 6g of gold. As we left, the racing was still going strong and was expected to continue into the early hours of the morning.