The "Future" of KABADDI

Getting in the groove

Many people are unaware of the glorious game called Kabaddi, which has had its origin in South Asia, though there are many proofs that India played a major role in the advancement of the game. In fact, its origins can be traced back to ancient Punjab about 4000 years ago... (Gulp!). There is a belief that the game has its roots in the way Abhimanyu was killed in Chakravyuha by the Kauravas. We Indians have already discarded the game as a pathetic time pass and have neglected it for long leaving only the Kabaddi Federation of India to worry about its future. I, myself, have played this amazing game while in my teens during the "shakhas" held in the evening with my friends. And that was the last time when I soiled my body, since it was quite an ardent task to continue it further as life sinked into the sands of time.

However, I do feel, that Kabaddi must not be forgotten, since its a part of the rich heritage of our country. It will be prudent to point out here, that while we are neglecting it in our homeland, the game is quite on the rise on foreign shores. For reference do check out how widely the tournaments are held around the globe, click here.

The future of the game, I must say is safe due to its global uprising, but the youth of India must not let happen another "cricket" out of it as had been the case with England.

Kabaddi History

Though Kabaddi is primarily an Indian game, not much is known about the origin of this game. There is, however, concrete evidence, that the game is 4,000 year old. It is a team sport, which requires both skill and power, and combines the characteristics of wrestling and rugby. It was originally meant to develop self-defense, in addition to responses to attack and reflexes of counter attack by individuals and by groups or teams. It is a rather simple and inexpensive game, and neither requires a massive playing area, nor any expensive equipment. This explains the popularity of the game in rural India. Kabaddi is played all over Asia with minor variations.

Kabaddi is known by various names viz. Chedugudu or Hu-Tu-Tu in southern parts of India, Hadudu (Men) and Chu - Kit-Kit (women) in eastern India, and Kabaddi in northern India. The sport is also popular in Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Japan and Pakistan.

The Game

In Kabaddi, two teams compete with each other for higher scores, by touching or capturing the players of the opponent team. Each team consists of 12 players, of which seven are on court at a time, and five in reserve. The two teams fight for higher scores, alternating defense and offense. The court is as large as that for a dodge ball game. The game consists of two 20-minute halves, with a break of five minutes for change of sides. The kabaddi playing area is 12.50m x 10m, divided by a line into two halves. The side winning the toss sends a 'raider', who enters the opponents' court chanting, 'kabaddi-kabaddi'. The raider’s aim is to touch any or all players on the opposing side, and return to his court in one breathe. The person, whom the raider touches, will then be out. The aim of the opposing team will be to hold the raider, and stop him from returning to his own court, until he takes another breath. If the raider cannot return to his court in the same breath while chanting ‘kabaddi’, he will be declared out. Each team alternates in sending a player into the opponents’ court. If a player goes out of the boundary line during the course of the play, or if any part of his body touches the ground outside the boundary, he will be out, except during a struggle.

Types of Kabaddi

In India, Kabaddi is recognized in three forms:

1. Surjeevani - The 'Surjeevani' form of Kabaddi is played under the Kabaddi Federation of India, and is governed by its rules and regulations. In the 'Surjeevani' form of Kabaddi, one player is revived against one player of the opposite team who is out. i.e., one out, one in. The duration of the game, the number of players, the dimensions of the court, etc. has been fixed by the Kabaddi Federation of India.

2. Gaminee - In the 'Gaminee' type of Kabaddi, there is no revival. When all the players of team are out, the game ends. So there is no time limit in this category.

3. Amar - This form of Kabaddi is played in Punjab and Punjabi Diaspora overseas. In the 'Amar' form of Kabaddi, whenever any player is touched (out), he does not go out of the court, but stays inside, and one point is awarded to the team that touched him. This game is also played on a time basis, i .e the time is fixed. This form of kabaddi is played in Punjab, Canada, England, New Zealand, USA, Pakistan and Australia. In the Amar form of Kabaddi, each team consists of 5-6 stoppers and 4-5 raiders. At one time, only 4 stoppers are allowed to play on the field. Every time a stopper stops the raider from going back to his starting point, that stoppers team gets 1 point. on the other hand, every time the raider tags one of the stoppers and returns to his starting point, his team gets one point. At one time, only one of the stoppers can try to stop the raider. If more than one touches the raider, an automatic point is awarded to the raider's team. If the stopper is pushed out by the raider or vice versa, then the team whose member is still in the field gets a point. If both the raider and the stopper go out, the result is a common point, where nobody gets a point. There is a 30 second time limit for the raider from the moment he leaves until he returns to his starting point. This rule was only recently introduced (1994) after controversy with some raiders abusing the old system where they were able to struggle through a point until they ran out of breath from repeating the word Kabaddi.

The first World Kabaddi Championship in the history of the game, was organized in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada, when more than 14,000 people packed the Copps Coliseum, to watch the top players from India, Pakistan, Canada, England, and the United States compete.

In Kabaddi dominated countries such as India and Canada, it is played on a professional basis with top players earning $25,000 and more for a 2 month season. The player who has made most out of the game is Balwinder Phiddu, who started playing in 1975 and only recently retired after the 1997 World Cup.

My only appeal to the readers of this article is to rekindle the flame of Kabaddi once again in your neighbourhood, one way or the other, while enjoying the other popular sports like Cricket and Soccer.