A RUNNING COMMENTARY ON THE loudspeaker punctuates the crowd's cheering-shrill, loud and spirited-as two sides line up against each other, one ready to raid and the other to defend. When a player from the raiding side crosses the mid line, drawn crudely on the ground, the cheering only grows louder. The charger lunges towards her four opponents, chanting 'kabaddikabaddi' without pausing for breath. The defenders are ready, swiftly averting each of the raider's attempts to tag them. Finally, one leaps forward and holds the raider tightly by the waist. Another grabs a leg. The remaining two block her way back to safety. The game is over. Smiling and laughing, the members of the two teams-in red, blue, green and other colourful cotton saris-greet each other as a bunch of kids, who had been following the proceedings keenly, raid the turf to embrace their mothers.
It's Olympics time in Chhattisgarh. Kabaddi, gilli danda (tip-cat), pitthul (seven stones), banti (marbles), langdi daud (one-legged race), rassakashi (tug of war) and bhanwara (spinning top), sports that were an intrinsic part of Indian tradition till video games and smartphones invaded the landscape and children's minds, are part of the first-of-its-kind extravaganza that kicked off on October 6 and has come to be called Chhattisgarhia Olympics. Young or old, man or woman, villager or townsperson, all Chhattisgarhis are welcome to take part in 14 disciplines during the multi-sport event that also includes the internationally recognised long jump and 100-metre dash (see The Folk Games).
This story is from the October 31, 2022 edition of India Today.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the October 31, 2022 edition of India Today.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Shuttle Star
Ashwini Ponnappa was the only Indian to compete in the inaugural edition of BDMNTN-XL, a new international badminton tourney with a new format, held in Indonesia
There's No Planet B
All Living Things-Environmental Film Festival (ALT EFF) returns with 72 films to be screened across multiple locations from Nov. 22 to Dec. 8
AMPED UP AND UNPLUGGED
THE MAHINDRA INDEPENDENCE ROCK FESTIVAL PROMISES AN INTERESTING LINE-UP OF OLD AND NEW ACTS, CEMENTING ITS REPUTATION AS THE 'WOODSTOCK OF INDIA'
A Musical Marriage
Faezeh Jalali has returned to the Prithvi Theatre Festival with Runaway Brides, a hilarious musical about Indian weddings
THE PRICE OF FREEDOM
Nikhil Advani’s adaptation of Freedom at Midnight details our tumultuous transition to an independent nation
Family Saga
RAMONA SEN's The Lady on the Horse doesn't lose its pace while narrating the story of five generations of a family in Calcutta
THE ETERNAL MOTHER
Prayaag Akbar's new novel delves into the complexities of contemporary India
TURNING A NEW LEAF
Since the turn of the century, we have lost hundreds of thousands of trees. Many had stood for centuries, weathering storms, wars, droughts and famines.
INDIA'S BEATING GREEN HEART
Ramachandra Guha's new book-Speaking with Nature-is a chronicle of homegrown environmentalism that speaks to the world
A NEW LEASE FOR OLD FILMS
NOSTALGIA AND CURIOSITY BRING AUDIENCES BACK TO THE THEATRES TO REVISIT MOVIES OF THE YESTERYEARS