GILLI DANDA is an amateur sport played in the rural areas and small towns all over India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Afghanistan and Pakistan as well as Cambodia, Turkey and Italy. The game is played with two sticks: a large one called a danda, which is used to hit a smaller one, the gilli.
Gilli Danda is an ancient sport of India, possibly with origins over 2500 years ago. It is believed to be the origin of Western games such as cricket, baseball and softball.
Number of players
Unlike modern games, any number of players or teams can play this game. That’s precisely the difference between the western and Indian games. However, it is preferred that you have only two teams to avoid unnecessary fights.
Resources Required :-
1) Gilli – a 3 to 6 inches long stick, one inch diameter at the center and tapered at both ends.
2) Danda – a 2 to 3 feet long stick , one inch in diameter
Steps Followed To Play :-
1) Divide the players into two teams. Let any of the two players be the captains.
2) Toss a coin. The team which wins the toss can select batting or fielding but not both.
3) Make the circle with a hole in the centre where the batsman will bat.
4) The player of the batting team will use danda to bat, while fielding team is spread in the ground to field. There is no bowler in this game.
5) The batsman hits the gilli at one tapered ends with his danda, and quickly strikes it.
6) If the batsman strikes the gilli which no fielder is able to catch, then the danda is used to measure the distance from the circle to the point where gilli fell. Each danda’s length adds one point to the batting team.
7) If the batsman is unable to strike the gilli in 3 continuous chances, the batsman is out.
8) If the batsman strikes the gilli and the fielder catches it before it touches the ground, then the batsman is out.
9) The next player of his team comes to bat.
10) Repeat the above steps unless all the players of the batting team are out. Calculate their total points.
11) Now the fielding team will bat and the batting team will start fielding. The above steps for the batting team will remain the same.
12) The team with maximum score will win the match
Skills Needed
This traditional Indian game requires exceptional hand-eye coordination, ability to catch and strong wrists.
The Current State
As it is the case with many Indian traditions, Gilli-Danda is slowly evaporating off India. The advent of Cricket, busy lifestyle and the sedentary modern life have all lead to the decline of the game that was once a popular childhood game in India.The Hindi writer Premchand in his short story “Gilli-Danda” used this very game as a tool to dwell into the stark differences between old and modern times and also to portray the caste inequality in India.
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