Since time immemorial, human beings have engaged themselves in various recreational activities, and playing sports and games has been a major part of them. The game and sports, which have prevailed in a community or society from one generation to another, are known as ‘traditional' or ‘ancient' games. Like many other parts of the world, various traditional games have been in existence among the inhabitants of Northeast India.
Here's a look at ancient games that are still quite popular among tribes in Northeast India.
Dhop Khel
Dhop Khel, also known as Dhup Khel or Dhoop Khel, is an ancient ball game played in Northeast India. Played between two teams of 11, players in the game take turns throwing the ball at the opponent to knock them out of the game while trying to catch the ball and evade other players.
While the game makes the use of cloth ball these days, the ball was made by layering a tomato with glue from a banyan tree in olden times. In fact, one can still find some Northeast Indian tribes making use of the sturdy tomato ball.
Ghila
Ghila is an ancient game that is quite popular among tribes in NorthEast India. Here Ghila, a small stone, is used to toss within five or six square-shaped boxes, which are drawn on the ground.
The gameplay starts with the player tossing the Ghila in the first box of the right-hand side. Then the player slides the stone with one leg, lifting another leg in the air. That way, the player has to jump on one leg and slide the stone out of the boxes. The only condition here is that the player can't touch the line of the boxes with the Ghila or leg. If it happens that the player touches the lines in the process, then he is out of the game.
Kochu
Another famous game in Northeast India, Kochu is played between two teams. A little piece of the ball, which is known as “Kochu Tepu”, is used in the game. A small hole is made in the ground. There's an umpire whose task is to monitor the game.
At the start of the game, the umpire tells both the teams to close their eyes and then rows the ball somewhere in the field. Then the players start searching for the ball, and the player who finds the ball first must go to the hole and put the ball inside. Here, the opponent team should resist the player while going to the hole. The team which is able to put the ball first in the hole wins the game.
Jhandi Munda
Also referred to as Langur Burja, Jhandi Munda is a street game that has been a prominent part of social events and family gatherings in the country for decades now. The game is also quite popular among the tribes in Northeast India, owing to the fact that it originated there.
The game of Jhandi Munda involves the use of six dice of six sides each. In Jhandi Munda, the symbols are printed on the six faces of every dice, such as Flag, Face, Club, Diamond, Spade and Crown. Here, the aim of the player is to bet on which symbol is likely to appear the most (after all of them are shuffled and rolled).
Luka Vaku
This game is played mostly by children in villages in Northeast India. In Luka Vaku, a bunch of children gather to play the game, and one player is kept aside blinding his eyes with a piece of cloth. Then other players hide somewhere within a predefined area.
The attacking player then has to search for other hiding players in the game. If he finds someone, then the player will be out of the game. If the player manages to find all the players, then he will win the game. On the other hand, the player needs to surrender if he is unable to find anyone in the game.
