GANJIFA – TRADITIONAL PLAYING CARDS OF INDIA
Ganj’ is a Persian word meaning treasure and though the derivation is not completely established, what remains intriguing is that there is always one money suit named after a coin of local currency. In MughalGanjifa, the two suits safed and surkh represented money. Mughal Ganjifa is variously known as Chang kanchan is Sawantwadi, Chang rani in Nirmal, Navgunjara or ath rangi sara in Orissa. In due course the Hinduization of themes greatly contributed to the spread and popularity of the game.
It is not certain whether the card games were played for amusement or speculation. It was a popular source of entertainment in India with kings, courtiers and the common masses. Even today, old people at Puri and Maharasthra play this game since it is believed that by repeating the name of God, sins are remitted. The standard playing cards of India are usually a set each of 96 cards of Mughal Ganjifa and of 120 or 144 cards of Dashavatara Ganjifa. The structure and the rules of both the games are the same except that in Dashavatara, the ten incarnations of Lord Vishnu are depicted. In order to bring alive the age-old magic of the game, each evening, at the workshop, a playing session was conducted. Cards are placed on a white cloth. After shuffling the cards, face down on the cloth, the players cut a deal and the cards are divided equally amongst three or four players. The player with the highest denomination starts the game. The suits are divided into strong and weak suits. For example in the Mughal Ganjifa set, Taj, Safed, Samsherand Ghulam are strong suits while Chang, Surkh, Barat and Qimash are weak suits. The sequence of each suit is arranged as Raja, Pradhan and serial number ace to ten for strong suits and ten to ace for weak suits. Each time the trick is to win the round by placing the highest denomination. Therefore it is beneficial for a player to remember all the symbols and cards played. By the end of the game, which is played in anti-clock-wise direction, the player who amasses the maximum number of cards is the winner. Similarly the game can be played with the Dashavatar set, Ashtadikpala, Ramayana, Navagraha etc. One of the greatest benefits is that besides a memory test, the game provides a good retention of traditional knowledge.
The game sessions attracted a lot of attention and on the last day after certificates were distributed, participants were keen to attend and continue painting and playing the cards.
Keeping in mind the feedback, SRC plans to hold periodical workshop disseminating the art to those interested. In order to encourage and develop awareness in the common man, a Ganjifa forum is being initiated for teaching the art of playing the game. This will surely persuade a larger number of people to buy cards from artisans. SRC has also taken up an ongoing digitization of Ganjifa cards for its archives.
Eventually one hopes that the players would popularize these cards all across India. One way is to develop this as a tool of education thereby elevating its artistic value and nurturing a legacy in heritage.
Dr. Pramila Lochan, IGNCA SRC
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