Gilli Danda : Cultural significance

Cultural significance

The Bollywood movie Lagaan mentions the traditional sport of Gilli-danda as similar to the British import of cricket.
Premchand, the famous Hindi literary figure, wrote a short story named "Gilli-danda" in which he compares old simple times and emotions to modern values and also hints at caste inequalities in India.

Gilli Danda : A traditional game

A traditional game played all round the country, it is called by different names. Usually a team game, it can be played by any number of children. The rules are different everywhere and you can have fun making your own rules.
You need:
Two wooden sticks are required for this game. Gilli - a small wooden piece 3-1/2 inches long 1-1/4 inches diameter at the centre and tapering at both ends. Danda - a long stick two feet long and one-inch in diameter, like a round ruler. Ask your parents to help you get this. Any carpenters shop will make one for you.
A small circle of four feet diameter is drawn. In the centre a small oblong shaped hole is dug which should be smaller than the gilli.
How to play:
Two teams are formed. One bats and the other fields.
Fielders stand in a position from where they can catch the gilli. The first player places the gilli in the hole and lifts it quickly high in the air with the danda and then strikes it. If he fails at first, he gets another turn. If the fielder catches the gilli before it touches the ground, the batsman is out and the second player tries to hit the gilli. If the gilli is not caught, the distance from the hole to the place where the gilli falls is measured with the danda. Each danda equals one point.
The fielder stands where the gilli had fallen and tosses it to the batsman. The batsman tries to hit the gilli while it is in the air. If it falls, he taps the tapered end and lifts it in the air and strikes while it is in the air. He gets three chances to hit the gilli. If he does not hit it, or is caught, he is out.
The game continues till all batsmen are out. The team changes side and continues the same way. The team with higher score wins.

Gilli Danda : Rules

Rules

The objective of the sport is to use the danda to strike the gilli. For this purpose, a circle is drawn in the ground in which a small, oblong- or spindle-shaped hole is dug (the overall shape looks like a traditional boat). This hole is smaller than the gilli but as the play progresses the size may increase due to wear. The gilli is inserted into the hole either orthogonally, or at an angle. Many times, especially with children, no hole is used. The danda is then swung downward onto the end of the gilli, causing the gilli to jump upward. The striker then strikes the gilli outward, away from him. Another variation is when the danda lifts or pries the gilli out of the hole at a high speed. As it is quite similar to cricket, many peoplebelieve that cricket originated from it.

Scoring and outs

There are many regional variations to scoring.
The gilli becomes airborne after it is struck. If a fielder from the opposing team catches the gilli, the striker is out. If the gilli lands on the ground, the fielder closest to the gilli has one chance to hit the danda (which has to be placed on top of the hole used) with a throw (similar to a run out in cricket). If the fielder is successful, the striker is out; if not, the striker scores one score and gets another opportunity to strike. The team (or individual) with the most points wins the game. If the striker fails to hit gilli in three tries, the striker is out (similar to a strikeout in baseball).

Teams

There is no official maximum number of players or teams. Gilli-danda can be played where each individual plays for themselves, or between two teams.

Gilli Danda : Origin and Equipment

Origin

There are no records of the game's origin in the south Asian subcontinent or of its existence before the arrival of Europeans. However a similar game known as Lippa has a history of being played in Italy and southern Europe and Tip-cat which was played in the UK.

Equipment

Gulli-danda have no official requirements for equipment. The game is played with a gilli or guli and danda, which are both wooden sticks. The danda is longer and handmade by the player, who can swing it easily. The gilli is smaller and is tapered on both sides so that the ends are conical. The gilli is analogous to a cricket ball and the danda is analogous to a cricket bat.
There is no standard length defined for the danda or gilli. Usually, however, the gilli is 3 to 6 inches long and the danda is 12 to 18 inches.

Gilli Danda : Introduction

Gilli-danda (Devanagari: गिल्ली डण्डा), or Guli Danda is an amateur sport, popular among rural youth in the Indian subcontinent and Cambodia. It is called dānggűli in Bangla, Axomia, chinni-dandu in Kannada, kuttiyum kolum in Malayalam, viti-dandu विट्टी दांडू in Marathi, kitti-pullu in Tamil, Gooti-Billa or "Karra-Billa" or "Billam-Godu" in Telugu, Gulli-Danda گلی ڈنڈا in Urdu, Iti-Dakar اٽي ڏڪر in Sindhi, Lappa-Duggi لپا ڈگی in Pashto and Kon ko in khmer, the Cambodian language. This sport is generally played in the rural and small towns of the Indian subcontinent. It is widely played in North-Eastern Part of India - Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Tripura, Arunachal Pradesh, Punjab in India and also rest of India, and rural areas of the North-West Frontier Province and Sindh, Pakistan, Uttar Pradesh (north India).