I hadn’t even heard of Jeet Kune Do — like many of you haven’t — I’m sure. To imagine that it is the legendary martial artist Bruce Lee’s signature street fighting style, only added to my hunger to take a class.
Jeet Kune Do (last two words pronounced together like ‘kundo’) or JKD means “the art of intercepting first”. It is an amalgamation of various forms of martial art, which is then tailor-made to each individual who learns it. It all sounded good as I read up about it. When seeking an appointment I’m told that it is okay to take the class even if you’re a “couch potato with abysmal fitness levels.”
Landing at the doorstep of the ICS Fight Club Institute of Combat Studies at Indiranagar, I’m not surprised to see that instructor, Dr. Ritesh Reddy, is a young man a little over five feet, and of compact build, much like Bruce Lee was. More hope. Ritesh, who is also a practising psycho-analyst, is clear that one must first understand the underlying philosophies of JKD before starting off on the ‘moves’ – “The JKD philosophy is holistic and you can apply it in daily life to problem solving, decision making; you study combat intellectually.” The theory and practicals flow into each other during the rest of the class, much like the fluidity that JKD promises.
With a bow to the image of his teachers and to Ritesh, I think I’m ready to start. That is where I’m caught first. When I bowed, my eyes look at the floor. “Never take your eyes off the person in front of you. Never let your guard down,” warns Ritesh.
His centre is the only authorised one for JKD in Asia, he stresses. There may be about 500 third-generation teachers from Bruce Lee the world over, and he is one of them.
Warm up is fairly quick and easy, with a concentration on the abdomen and spine. Then comes the stance – your posture to defend yourself. “But JKD is an offensive art,” Ritesh stresses. “You don’t wait to get hit – you intercept.” If you stand straight all your vitals are exposed to the opponent – eyes, face, solar plexus, groin. So I learn to position myself in such a way that my body is at an angle good enough to not expose myself completely, which also enables the use of both my hands and legs, while one hand protects my face. Slowly, but steadily, Ritesh builds up confidence – I am to kick and punch, deciding which part of the body to use – elbow or knee, foot or fist, depending on the distance I am from my opponent.
‘Chap, chap’, comes the sound as my fist meets his sturdy palm and gives me a high. Next he picks up a realistic human mask which he wears as a glove on his hand, and asks me to punch the face with all my might. Got it! But the second time, the face has moved, and my fist is elsewhere. I have some hits, some misses. “You need to follow the face and anticipate where the man is going to be…it is different from mindlessly hitting a stationary punching bag.” After a few attempts, you figure the point is well made!
The thing with JKD is that there are no rules – you can kick, punch, grapple – anything to defend yourself. “It is scientific street fighting, and you are training for survival,” reminds Ritesh. The goal is to make a novice comfortable with all forms of fighting. Ritesh uses it to teach women self defence. “Today you don’t need to wield a sword but you may have to defend yourself against an aggressive auto driver.”
By the end of the class, I’ve been taught how to kick a man in the groin pulling him down by his shirt, drive my elbow into his face, attack his eyes with my fingers or pen…and other such practical moves. Now the deal is to put myself in front of the mirror everyday, imagine, and practise.
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The Way of JKD
*You must be 18 and above to take this class
*You need not have any particular fitness level/don’t need to have learnt any other martial art before you enroll
*There are no competitions, no belts to be won
*It takes a minimum of about three months to get comfortable with your body, using it, applying what you’ve learnt
*Training in the self-defence programme involves creating everyday situations, fighting multiple opponents, so that you are readied for real-world situations
*Fees start at around Rs. 5000 a month and can vary depending on requirements.
*Classes are on a one-to-one basis, by appointment only, between 6 a.m. and midnight.
