Introduction – The game, known as Hu-Tu-Tu in Western India, Ha-Do-Do in Eastern India and Bangladesh, Chedugudu in Southern India and Kaunbada in Northern India, has changed through the ages. It is a synthesis of the game played in various forms under different names. It is also called the Game of the Warriors (Veera Vilayatu) in South India.

Origin – The game is said to have had its inception in the southern state of Tamil Nadu. Even the word ‘kabaddi’ owes its origin to the Tamil word, ‘kai-pidi’, which means holding hands. The country not only gave birth to the sport but also made it a staple sport amongst the youth for the purpose of developing their physical strength and reflex actions.

How to play – In the international team version of kabaddi, two teams of seven members each occupy opposite halves of a field of 10 by 13 metres (33 ft × 43 ft) in case of men and 8 by 12 metres (26 ft × 39 ft) in case of women. Each has three supplementary players held in reserve. The game is played with 20 min halves and a 5-min halftime break during which the teams exchange sides.
Two teams consist of 7 players each on the mat, but it’s perhaps the only sport where attacking (raiding) is an individual attempt and the lone raider is faced by a challenge of a 7-man defensive unit. It is mandatory for raider to chant word “kabaddi” when the 30-sec raid is in play to show the referee that the raider is exhaling and not holding his breath.
The first goal of the raider though is to get cross the midline and then go past the Baulk line in the opposing half, making the raid valid. The high intensity contact sport with two halves of 20 min each revolves around the raider’s (attacker) second goal of touching as many opposition players as possible before returning to his own half without being tackled and within the 30-sec raid clock ticking down. A raider has many arrows in his quiver to get the job done: toe touches, hand touches, kicks, reverse kicks or by escaping a tackle and reaching the midline.
Today, the game is pursued widely all over the world. India has been the torchbearer of this sport, but it is played with equal fervour in Bangladesh, Japan, Sri Lanka, Iran, Korea, Thailand, Malaysia, China, Trinidad and Tobago, Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, Indonesia and many more countries.
With the founding of the PKL in 2014, the sport has simply exploded. The glitz and glamour, the razzmatazz, the branding, the packaging – all the ingredients have been blended well to make kabaddi a sport that everybody can readily connect to, building an even brighter future for the game and its exponents.