Grand Master Nazir revives ‘Sqay Martial Art of Kashmir,’ takes it to 62 countries

Nazir Ahmad Mir is a renowned name in the arena of martial art sports known to millions as Grand Master.
The 52-year veteran from Drangbal locality of Saffron town Pampore rose to ranks from a modest player to an internationally acclaimed champion who founded Kashmir’s indigenous art form, Sqay, into an international sport played across 62 countries of the world.
Nazir narrated that he was introduced to martial arts by his father’s friend, an Indian army officer at Badamibagh Cantonment Srinagar, in 1975 when he was just 5.
“ I learnt basic skills of the martial arts from the army officer for three years,” Nazir, who wrote the rule book for Sqay martial arts, said, adding that he continued to learn the game and simultaneously started participating in different local events. As he grew up he won many national and international Championships.
Nazir said that he switched to coaching youngsters in different styles of Martial arts which were mastered by him.
As an international player he visited different places around the world and noticed they have their own respective martial arts.
The curiosity to trace Kashmir’s indigenous martial art took him to many texts and chronicles concerning Kashmir. Ultimately, he came across Sqay which was prevalent in ancient Kashmir as war art.
Sqay, a Persian word means knowledge of war.
Nazir told that in ancient Kashmir kings used to train their army in Sqay martial art to protect themselves from enemies.
He added that people also used Sqay to prey wild animals in forests.
Those days Sqay was known locally as Shamsheerizen which was also displayed on certain festive occasions like marriage functions and fairs.
However, the art faded away after 1819.
For reviving this traditional art form, Nazir reintroduced Sqay as a sport in Kashmir on 7 May, 1987.
Initially, people took less interest in learning this art so Nazir focused on Thang- Ta which is traditional martial art form of Manipur.
While coaching youngsters at National Institute of Martial Arts ( NIMA) at Pampore, Nazir persuaded his friends and co-trainers for adopting Sqay.
The Grand Master founded an organization for promotion of Sqay with assistance from like-minded people of his native town including Ali Mohammad Naiko, Dr Ali Mohammad Mir and Murrawat Hussein.
This organization was precursor of today’s International Council of Sqay.
After training his friends Nazir started to popularise this sport in other parts of the country and the world. His morale was boosted when Maharashtra state adopted the sport after a demonstration by him. Thailand was the first country to accept Sqay. However, the major leap came in 2006 when around 20 countries accepted this sport after a demonstration by the Grand Master in Bangladesh.
Nazir told that Sqay is now played in 62 countries of the world which include India, Nepal, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, Cyprus, Russia, Azerbaijan and Sri Lanka.
The Grand master said that the language used in this attack and defence game is Kashmiri. He said that there are different categories of the sport like combat where two players take to each other one on one basis without causing any physical injury, artistic which is an individual performance, group performance and Aero Sqay.
The Grand Master is presently serving as Secretary General of International Council of Sqay.
“ I want to preserve this traditional art form of Kashmir by passing it on to the young generation,” Nazir said, adding that this feeling has been his driving force for all these years.