No society is unknown to playing games. As a pastime for every household, it strengthens the bond between members of families and different communities together, serving as an essential component of cultural development within social boundaries. One of the key aspect attached to making it a fun activity is the required skillset that are deployed and shows the wit of every player. When indoor games are discussed, nothing comes close to Indian games from the early historical period to mediaeval period such as Chaupar and Pacchisi(Believed to be the precursor to Ludo), Moksha Patam (Snake and Ladder) and Ganjappa or Ganjifa and many such. Ganjappa or Ganjifa, particularly in the mediaeval India, has played a significant role as a part and parcel of royalty and commoners altogether, the journey and legacy of which will be elucidated in the following text.
Origin and spread of this game:
When closely analyzed, one can notice that the term Ganjappa is actually a regionalized form of the term “Ganjifa”, which is the identical game introduced by the Mughal emperor Babur in India. Although the origin of this term is still in obscurity, there are theories in the scholarly domain that proposes its origin back to a Persian term “Ganj”, which refers to “hoard or treasure” and while we have several mentions of Ganjifa in “Baburnama”, “Humayunnama” and “Ain-i-Akbari”, which portrays the keen interest of the contemporary rulers in these playing cards, the oldest reference that mentions about this game comes from the 15th century account of Ibn Taghribirdi, who have documented that he Mamluk sultan gambled with these cards as a young man.
With ganjifa, card playing turned into a popular as well as widespread sport in the 17th and 18th century Indian courts, especially with the Zenanas(Women’s quarters), where it became a recourse from boredom. The increased popularity made this game not only a matter of vanity among the elites, which can be reflected in the different kind of decks that are found such as the decks that were created for the Nobility were made from lacquered Ivory or tortoise shell, embedded with precious and semi-precious stones, known as “Dabur Kalam”, but also a popular pastime play among the commoners, who used cheaper decks made of wood, palm leaf, pasteboard and other inexpensive materials, known as “Bazaar Kalam”.
The rise of Mughal domains within the subcontinent played as a fertile ground for the increased popularity of Ganjifa cards, which became a widespread activity, pervaded into regions like Deccan, Mysore, Odisha, Bengal, Rajputana and Telugu speaking dominions with their respective regional variations such as Mughal Ganjifa, Rashi Ganjifa and the famous Dashavatara Ganjifa with card numbers ranging from 48 to 120 and more.
Rules of this game:
While there are man regional variations to this complex game, the basic rules adhered to it are mostly identical to other playing cards. The objective lies in winning as many tricks possible, which can only be won by the player with the highest ranking card. The game starts with two or more players. The dealer shuffles the deck and deals each player with a hand of cards, while the rest will be placed face down in a pile within the center of table.
When the game begins, the player sitting on the left of the dealer plays a card of their own choice. If the other player has cards from the same suit, then they are forced to play that and if not, then they can play any card. The highest ranking card of the suit wins the trick and the winner takes all the cards and puts it face down in front of them. This series continues until all the cards have been played from the deck and the player with most number of tricks wins the round.
The rich legacy of Odia Ganjappa:
According to theories, Ganjifa entered Odisha with its annexation into the Mughal empire in the 1590s, when it got localized as Ganjappa by adapting to the local traditions and artistic sensibilities. While this Persian card game held its originality as a luxurious card game in the other regions of the subcontinent, in Odisha, it became more than just a game and took on a religious and storytelling elements, a prime element in its acculturation among the Odia people.
When Ganjappa paved its way towards Odisha, its initial identity was just a Persian card game for the royalty, but as the time went by, it penetrated deeper into the courts of local kings of Odisha such as Puri, Berhampur, Ganjam, where it was embraced by the rulers and commoners as well. It was until the beginning of 19th century, when we have many references of Ganjappa as a theme based card game, completely localized among the masses of Odisha, which carries a multitude of fascinating themes that are rooted into the Jagannatha culture, Hindu mythology and local folklores, which made it easier for Ganjappa to get assimilated as a part and parcel of an Odia household.
As a result, Ganjappa in Odisha stood out from its other regional counterparts due to the multiplicity of variation in the number suits it provides which are
- Charirangi: Four suited version, which is probably derived from the Naqsh Ganjifa.
- Atharangi: An eight suited version, which can be considered as the closest similar variation to the original Mughal Ganjifa, popular among the masses in the district of Puri and Ganjam.
- Dasarangi: Ten suited version modeled on the Dashavatara Ganjifa, depicting the 10 incarnation of Lord Vishnu, but the number of suits can vary upto 24 units.
- Bararangi: twelve suited version.
- Chaudarangi: Fourteen suited version.
- Solarangi: Sixteen suited version.
Contribution to the craftsmanship:
Another distinguishing attribute of Ganjappa is its hand painted artistic design. Unlike the modern printed playing cards, each deck of Ganjappa is a unique piece of artwork, which is handcrafted by the skilled artisans form Pattachitra painters from Raghurajpur and Ganjam. These artisans have adopted the art of making Ganjappa as their generational profession, which have been inherited by every succeeding generations. Interestingly, the materials they use to make these cards have been modified with each group of succeeding artists and unlike the original Ganjappa, which was made of lacquered ivory and wood, these artists have switched to palm leaves, handmade paper and stiffened cloth as the base material, which is then treated by tamarind paste for achieving smoothness. Since Ganjappas are known for their vibrant and colourful faces, the artists are very much considerate about picking up the sources of these colours from natural dyes, pigments derived from vegetables, minerals and stones, which all are absolutely natural. To finish the final piece of art, fine brushes, which are sometime made with squirrel hairs, often useful in painting intricate designs.
A fading artform with continuous revival effort:
With the influx of mass printed playing cards during the colonial period, Ganjappa lost its prominence among the masses. While that was one of the reason, which served for its gradual decline, other reasons such as losing the royal patronage due to the shady colonial policies of the British East India Company, the major shift in public preference over the handmade as well as time intensive cards in the era of rapid industrialization. However recent efforts have highlighted the presence of Ganjappa in the attention of public such as the artisans from Raghurajpur and Puri are putting efforts in reviving it as a collectible art form, whereas Museums and other cultural institutions are rendering their support for preserving Ganjappa decks, along with handicraft exhibitions and NGOs, which are conducting workshops to educate the younger generations about these playing cards, which carries Odisha’s rich cultural legacy.