Some Peruvians get punches instead of presents as part of a regional tradition to settle scores on Christmas Day

Alia ShoaibDec 24, 2022, 18:12 IST

Sebastian Castaneda/Anadolu Agency via Getty ImagesSebastian Castaneda/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

In parts of Peru residents gather ever year on December 25 to settle scores with fight-fights.
Men, women and children of all ages can participate to resolve a range of disputes.

Do you have any scores you want to settle for Christmas? You could travel to Peru for their annual fighting festival which sees participants solve conflicts through fist-fighting.

The festival of Takanakuy takes place in parts of the Chumbivilcas province in southern Peru on December 25 every year.

In the Andes Mountains, locals gather for a day of music, dancing, drinking and fist-fights. With all grudges and ill will dealt with in one day, the festival aims to strengthen community bonds and resolve conflicts before going into the new year.

The festival is open to men and women of all ages.

: Two women fight during Takanakuy celebrations in the region of Chumbivilcas, Cuzco in the Andes of southern Peru on December 25, 2014.Sebastian Castaneda/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

The types of disputes vary.

A man fights his neighbor during a Takanakuy ritual fighting event on the outskirts of Lima, Peru December 25, 2015.Martin Mejia/AP Photo

The fights both start and end with a hug.

A bleeding man pictured during Takanakuy celebrations in the region of Chumbivilcas, Cuzco in the Andes of southern Peru on December 25, 2014.Sebastian Castaneda/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Fighters can kick and punch each other.

Two men fight during Takanakuy celebrations in the region of Chumbivilcas, Cuzco in the Andes of southern Peru on December 25, 2014.Sebastian Castaneda/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Fighters often wear colorful costumes.

Men wearing colorful masks during Takanakuy celebrations in the region of Chumbivilcas, Cuzco in the Andes of southern Peru on December 25, 2014.Sebastian Castañeda/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Alcohol is heavily consumed.

Two men fight in the Takanakuy ritual on December 25, 2018, in San Juan de Lurigancho in Peru.Geraldo Caso/picture alliance via Getty Images

The festival includes music and dancing.

Andean indigenous dancer Waira Sacsi is helped with her hair by her mother Flor before the start of the "akanakuy fighting ritual on the outskirts of Lima, Peru on December 25, 2015.Martin Mejia/AP Photo

It is unclear when the festival originated.

Masked fighters participating in the Takanakuy event on the outskirts of Lima, Peru December 25, 2015.Martin Mejia/AP Photo

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