Traditional games of India
has several traditional games and sports, some of which have been played for thousands of years. Their popularity has greatly declined in the modern era, with Western sports having overtaken them during the British Raj, and the Indian government now making some efforts to revive them. Many of these games do not require much equipment or playing space. Some of them are only played in certain regions of India, or may be known by different names and played under different rules and regulations in different regions of the country.
History
Ancient era
has been played since at least the fourth century BC. Kabaddi and kho-kho may have had certain aspects of their gameplay mentioned in the Mahabharata, which was written before 300 AD. Atya-patya is mentioned in the Naṟṟiṇai, written in 300 AD or before. Chaturanga is an ancient board game which experienced various modifications as it was transmitted from India toward Europe and became the modern game of chess. Some of these games were used for military training purposes; constant warfare between Indians/against invaders forced an emphasis on physical activities related to fighting. One example of this connection between sports and war was Abhimanyu's piercing of the Chakravyuha as depicted in the Mahabharata, which may have had a connection to the skills used in kabaddi and kho-kho.File:Permainan galasin.jpg|thumb|190x190px|A few traditional Indian games have been noted for being similar to games in Southeast Asia, such as atya-patya, whose Indonesian variant gobak sodor is pictured here.Traditional Indian games served various purposes throughout and had various connections to Indian history; for example, certain aspects of the Bengali hopscotch game of ekka-dokka may have represented concepts of social division of property, kabaddi may have been used as a preparation for hunting, and the Bengali tag game of gollachut may have represented escape attempts by agricultural slaves during the Indus Valley Civilization. Hindu teachings placed emphasis on being physically fit, with the Kshatriya warrior caste in particular having to practice martial activities such as archery, while Buddhist teachings were more mixed; Buddha prohibited some traditional games which were considered to be causing negligence amongst people, though he himself played certain other games, such as archery and kabaddi. Buddhist monks, who generally shunned violence, adopted the use of Indian martial arts to protect themselves. Different activities were interrelated; the breathing aspects of kabaddi had connections with the pranayama breath-control techniques from yoga and the martial art of kalaripayattu was practiced in tandem with atya-patya by soldiers in Kerala.
Indo-Muslim era
During Mughal rule, some of the traditional games were greatly patronised and played in modified ways; for example, Akbar invented a version of polo which could be played at night by setting the ball on fire, and played a magnified version of pachisi with courtesans acting as the pieces on the board. However, Hindu subjects were discouraged from drinking and playing polo, which were apt to make them unruly and rebellious. Wrestling was popular at the time as well, with Persian and Indian forms of wrestling merging to form pehlwani.Colonial era
During the time of the British Raj, Indians began to focus more on playing British sports such as cricket, hockey, and football rather than their traditional sports. Part of the reason behind this was so that they could rise up the ranks by imitating the culture of the colonisers; later on, some Indians also started to see British sports as an activity in which they could "beat" their colonisers. The British also at times pushed for the growth of Western physical culture, seeing it as a way to increase the uptake of British culture and values in India, and arguing that Indian men were effeminate and thus needed a more European physical regimen. This was intertwined with the British promoting the martial race theory, in which the native soldiers that were loyal to the British Empire were seen as brave and well-built for fighting, while the educated dissenters were unfit.A notable traditional sport which continued to be played during this time was polo, which the British helped to codify and support as an official sport. Some British board games, such as Snakes and Ladders and Ludo, were also inspired by Indian board games.
Some self-funded sports clubs, such as the akharas, vyayamshalas, and kreeda mandals promoted and organized competitions at various levels for traditional games during this time. Various traditional games began to be standardized during this period, and some of them were exhibited at the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games.
Contemporary era
In post-Independent India, the traditional sports' popularity has greatly declined with the further growth of Western sports and online gaming. Kabaddi is the most popular traditional sport, with the highest viewership and most career opportunities; its growth was spurred on by the creation of the Pro Kabaddi League. Kabaddi's growth has led to it spreading outside of South Asia as well, with countries such as South Korea and Iran playing it. Kho-kho has also had a franchise league started for it, Ultimate Kho Kho; the Pro Kabaddi League and Ultimate Kho Kho are respectively the most and third-most viewed non-cricket competitions in India.Whereas in the past, traditional Indian games were often played on mud surfaces in rural areas, in the modern day they are often played on matted surfaces with changes to their rule sets and other aspects of their appearance to make them more appealing and exciting. Some traditional games, such as board games and casino card games, are also being digitalised so that they can be played as video games.