Introduction
A sport that is considered a national game of any country depends on the popularity of the game among the citizens of that country or any historical connection of the game with that country. In most cases, the maximum netizens of any country play that game which is considered as that country’s national game. This rule does not apply in the case of kabaddi. Because the kabaddi game was not originated from Bangladesh but still it is the national game of that country. But it is believed that kabaddi was taken birth from Tamilnadu India 4000 years earlier and even in epic Mahabharata the kabaddi game was mentioned.
But despite all of these connections, the game is not the national game of that country. But it can be said that the Indian kabaddi team won over many hearts by their excellent performance both in men’s and women’s teams. Many believed that around 5000 years ago, Iran gave birth to this game but this game is not the national game of that country also. The objective of the national game in any country is to motivate the citizens for physical activities and make them understand the significance of that sport for that country.
Why Kabaddi cannot be declared as the national game of India
Kabaddi took part in the year of the 1938 Indian Olympics for the first time and this game earned popularity in Japan by Indian travelers who went to Japan. Some states in India considered the kabaddi game as their state game. For example, these states are Andhrapradesh, Haryana, Bihar, Karnataka, Kerala, Odisha, Punjab, Tamilnadu, Telangana, and Andhrapradesh. Even the game is known by different names in these states. Chadakudu in South India, hu-do-do in Eastern India, hu-tu-tu in western India, Kabaddi in Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Kerala, Chengdu in Telangana and Andhrapradesh, and sadguru in Tamilnadu. Despite being a popular game, the Indian government never declared kabaddi as its national game. India is that country that has no national game at all.
Bangladesh declared kabaddi as their national game
Kabaddi is known as ha-du-du or kabaddi in Bangladesh. Apart from kabaddi, cricket, football is popular among the citizens of that country. But the reason behind declaring kabaddi as the national game is the rural culture of that country. As a veteran kabaddi player of that country explained the matter in this way that this game is easily understood by the people. It can be seen easily that the citizens of that country play this game in their local area.
They do not need any rubber court, they can play comfortably in the mud court. After the winning of the game, the winner gets cattle, rice, and radio as a reward. Even in many village areas, married and unmarried people play these games against each other. Farmers played this game during their festivals. It can be said that this game is strongly connected to the grassroots people and culture of Bangladesh. For this reason, Sheikh Mujibar Rahman, founder of Bangladesh declared kabaddi as the country’s national game. This country won a bronze medal in the 2006 Asian games. In 1980, the country got runners-up to position in the first Asian Kabaddi championship.
