A tackle occurring in kabaddi, South Asia's most professionally played traditional game.
South Asia has many traditional games and sports.[1] Two of them, kabaddi and kho-kho, are played at the South Asian Games, with kabaddi also featuring at the Asian Games.[2] Many of these games are played across the entire subcontinent under different names and with some rule variations, while some of these games may be played only in certain countries or regions.
Some traditional South Asian games, such as kabaddi, kho-kho, and atya-patya, are believed to be thousands of years old, finding mention in historical scriptures[3] and dating back to ancient India.[4][5][6] Kho-kho, for example, dates back to at least the fourth century BC.[7] Many South Asian games likely reflect characteristics of traditional life in the subcontinent; for example, the Bengali hopscotch game of ekka-dokka (related to Stapoo and Chindro) may reflect the concepts of land division and ownership of property in ancient times.[8]
After the British colonisation of the subcontinent which peaked from the 19th century to 1947, Western sports such as cricket, football, and hockey began to be followed to a greater extent, to the detriment of the traditional games.[9][10] The modern advent of urbanisation,[11]globalisation (which attracted people towards more globally popular games),[12] and technology (which gave people digital forms of entertainment such as the Internet, television, and video games)[13] have further diminished the traditional South Asian sports.[14] Additional reasons include religious extremism in some areas, which has restricted people from playing certain games, and lack of governmental support.[15]
However, some professional leagues are now being started for certain traditional sports, such as the Pro Kabaddi League, Ultimate Kho Kho, and Pro Panja League, which are beginning to revive interest in these sports and even globalise them;[16][17] these leagues are now some of the most-watched competitions in the subcontinent.[18]
Traditional games
Gillidanda
Gillidanda or gulli danda is a game where players attempt to hit a stick as far as possible to score points. It has similarities to the popular South Asian sport of cricket, as well as to traditional games around the world, such as tipcat.[19]
is a game popular in the Indian subcontinent. The game is played with a stone that is tossed or slid on a marked-off playing court. It is similar to hopscotch.
Gutte
Gutte (similar to Meergati and Bilghotti in Pakistan) involves players throwing up and then grabbing stones on the ground, while ensuring none of the stones falls from the air to the ground.[20][21][22]
Dark room
Dark room is the same as hide-and-seek, except that it is played in an entirely dark room.[23][24]
Donkey Donkey
Donkey Donkey (similar to the Pakistani Beech ki Billi)[25] is a game in which two players attempt to throw a ball to each other, while a player in the middle tries to catch it.[26]
In the game of seven stones (known by several other names in various regions), one team throws a ball at a pile of stones and then attempts to rebuild the pile, while the other team tries to eliminate the first team's players by throwing the ball at them.[28][29]
In many South Asian variations of tag, the player meant to tag the other players is known as the "denner".[30][31] There are various ways of selecting the denner, such as Saa Boo Three (also known as pugam pugai), in which a group of three players face one of their hands up or down, and if one of the players faces their hand the opposite way of the other two, then they are chosen as the denner.[32][33]
Kabaddi being played at the 2018 Asian GamesKabaddi (/kəˈbædi/,[34]/ˈkʌbədi/)[35] is a contactteam sport played between two teams of seven players, originating in ancient India.[36] The objective of the game is for a single player on offense, referred to as a "raider", to run into the opposing team's half of the court, touch out as many of their players as possible, and return to their own half of the court, all without being tackled by the defenders in 30 seconds. Points are scored for each player tagged by the raider, while the opposing team earns a point for stopping the raider. Players are taken out of the game if they are touched or tackled, but return to the game after each point scored by their team from a tag or tackle.
Kho kho game in progress at a government school in Haryana, IndiaKho kho is a traditional South Asian sport that dates to ancient India.[37][38] It is the second-most popular traditional tag game in the Indian subcontinent after kabaddi.[39] Kho kho is played on a rectangular court with a central lane connecting two poles which are at either end of the court. During the game, nine players from the chasing team (attacking team) are on the field, with eight of them sitting (crouched) in the central lane, while three runners from the defending team run around the court and try to avoid being touched.[38] Each sitting player on the chasing team faces the opposite half of the field that their adjacent teammates are facing.
Freeze tag
Freeze tag (also known as Baraf Paani in North-India and Pakistan, and as Borof Paani in Bangladesh) involves players becoming "frozen" in place when tagged by an opponent, but becoming unfrozen when tagged by a teammate.[40][41]
Atya patya (Hindi: आट्यापाट्या) is a traditional South Asian tag sport played by two sides of nine players. It is more popular in rural areas of India. It is more commonly played in Maharashtra, a western Indian state.[42] Atya patya is described as a "game of feints".[43] The playing area comprises nine trenches, coming out of either side of a central trench; a point is awarded to the attacking team's players for each trench they cross without being tagged out by the defensive players within the trenches.[44] The game ends after 4 innings (scoring turns) of 7 minutes each, with each team having two innings to score. It has been described as a game of "militant chase".[45] The sport is played in a relatively small area and requires no equipment, similar to other games indigenous to India such as kabaddi, seven stones, kho kho, gillidanda and langdi.[43]
School kids play langdi during a inter-school competitionLangdi[a] is a traditional South Asian field sport which combines elements of tag and hopscotch.[47] It was originally played during the Pandiyan Dynasty and called "Nondiyaattam" at that time. The teams alternate chasing (attacking) and defending roles in each of the 4 innings of the game, with the chasing team's players restricted to hopping around on one foot, and attempting to score points by tagging as many defenders as possible within the 9 minutes of each inning. It is described by Marathis as a sport with a Marathi ethos.[48]
Aankh micholi
Aankh micholi (similar to Bangladesh's Kanamachi) is a form of blindfolded tag.[20][49]
Snakes and ladders is a board game for two or more players regarded today as a worldwide classic. The game originated in ancient India invented by saint Dnyaneshwar as Moksha Patam, and was brought to the United Kingdom in the 1890s. It is played on a game board with numbered, gridded squares. A number of "ladders" and "snakes" are pictured on the board, each connecting two specific board squares. The object of the game is to navigate one's game piece, according to die rolls, from the start (bottom square) to the finish (top square), helped by climbing ladders but hindered by falling down snakes.
Another traditional game called Ludo, is mostly played at the same board on the other side. Four participants can play this game with the help of dice.
Tibetans playing carrom in DelhiCarrom is a tabletop game of Indian origin in which players flick discs, attempting to knock them to the corners of the board. In South Asia, many clubs and cafés hold regular tournaments. Carrom is commonly played by families, including children, and at social functions. Different standards and rules exist in different areas.
