THE GAME I LIKE MOST
People have a craze for foreign things, foreign ideas, foreign food, foreign fashion and foreign games. That is how most of the educated young men have a fancy for cricket. They consider it a royal game. I just wonder what royalty is there in cricket. It is a symbol of our mental slavery. The countries that play cricket were once the slaves of the Britishers. What beauty is there in the game where two people play and eleven standbys?
Thousands and thousands are the be fooled onlookers and millions are stuck to the T.V. sets and transistors even during their office hours. Thus millions of man hours are wasted. People of many progressive countries like the USA, Russia, Germany, Japan and China have no interest in this game.
I like the games in which all the participants are active. Hockey, Football, Volleyball, and Basketball are there. But they too require sufficient investment. I like a game which does not require any investment and is played throughout the length and breadth of the country. It is the game of the rural people. It requires only one investment – good health. It is Kabaddi. Its name may be Tu Tu or Kabaddi or any other. But it is the most enjoyable game in the rural setting in the country.
I like Kabaddi for its sense of cooperation among the players every moment. It doesn’t require any paraphernalia. Find a small ground. Draw a rectangular line. Draw a line in the middle. The two courts are ready. There may be about ten players on both the sides. One has to have a control over his breath. It is rather fascinating to see a robust man taking a leap in the other court speaking ‘Kabaddi Kabaddi’ or ‘TuTu’. The other team is ready to encircle and catch hold of him. If there is perfect unity the young man is caught. But he continues saying Kabaddi and struggles fast till his breath is lost. If he touches the middle line before that he secures a mark -if not the other party gets it.
It is difficult to keep the breath for a minute or two. But what a drama is played within these 60 or 90 seconds. One man tried to touch as many as possible of the opponents in the court. The opponents springing on him like a pack of wolves. All the players are vigilant all the time. All the onlookers are busy every second. One party rests for a minute or two. But the fans are busy every moment. It is a manly game that requires a healthy body and a challenging situation every minute. It is the real national game of our country. I do not merely like it, I love the game.