Pooja Yeola

Student Reporter

Medha Kale

Editor and Translator

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As the sun begins to set in Navalgavhan
village, both young and old head towards the school playground. They get busy
cleaning the sportsfield, clearing it of stones and trash, marking boundary
lines with lime powder and checking the floodlights. 

Children aged 8 to 16 are soon ready in their
blue jerseys, and they split into teams of seven players each.

Kabaddi! Kabaddi! Kabaddi! 

The game begins and for the rest of the
evening, and some of the night, the spirited cries of players will rent the air
as this vigorous national game is played out, watched by family and friends
from the village in Hingoli district of Marathwada.

Holding his
breath, one player enters the opposing team’s side of the court and
attempts to touch and dismiss as many players as possible before returning
to his own camp. He cannot let up or stop chanting ‘kabaddi’ till he is back on
his side. If he is caught by the opposing team, he is dismissed from the game.

Everybody is watching two ace players, Shubham
Korde and Kanba Korde. The opponents also fear them. “They play as if kabaddi
runs in their veins,” someone in the crowd tells us. 

Shubham and Kanba win this match for their
team. Everyone gets in a huddle. The game is discussed minutely and a new plan
made for the next day. The players then head home. 

This is the daily routine in Navalgavhan
village of Maharashtra. “Our village has a long tradition of playing kabaddi.
Many generations have played this sport and even today, you will find at least
one player in each house,” says Marotirao Korde. He is the sarpanch of the
village. “Someday children from Navalgavhan will play in big places. That is
our dream.”

Kabaddi has been played in the Indian
subcontinent for many centuries. It was in 1918 that this sport got the status
of a National Game. In 1936 it received its first international exposure in the
Berlin Olympics. With the inception of the Pro-Kabaddi league in 2014, the game
has gained renewed popularity.  

The players here in
village are from modest backgrounds. Barring a few households, most of the
residents here belong to the Maratha community and depend on farming for their
survival. The region has red laterite soil with rocky patches.

Shubham also belongs to a farming family. He
has been playing Kabaddi since he was six. “The atmosphere in my village is
inspiring. I come here daily and practise for half an hour at least,” says the
12-year-old who is in Class 6. “I am a big fan of Puneri Paltan [a Pro-Kabaddi
league team]. I hope I can play for them in future,” he says. 

Shubham and Kanba study at the Sukhdevanand
High School in the neighbouring village, Bhandegaon. Kanba is in Class 10.
Along with them Vedant Korde and Akash Korde are two promising raiders – they
are known to dismiss 4-5 players in one go. “Back-kick, side-kick and sinhachi
udi [when you jump and free yourself] are our favourite parts of the game,”
they say. All of them are all-rounders in the game.

In Navalgavhan, the teams are made on the basis
of weight. Under 30-kg, under 50-kg and the Open group. 

Kailas Korde is the captain of the Open group.
“We have won many trophies to date,” says 26 year old Kailas. They won Matrutva
Sanman Kabaddi tournament in 2024, Vasundhara Foundation’s Kabaddi Chashak in
2022 and again in 2023. They have also won state level tournaments organised by
the Sukhdevanand Kabaddi Krida Mandal. 

“Matches held on 26th January,
Republic Day, are a big thing. People come to see us play – teams from
neighbouring villages come to compete. We also get awards and cash prizes.” He
feels there should be many more competitions. At present, these are held only
twice or thrice a year. Young players need more of these, says Kailas.

Kailas is preparing for police recruitment.
Every morning he travels 13 kilometres to Hingoli and studies for two hours at
a study-room. Then he goes to the sports ground and does his exercise and
physical training. His commitment to sports, exercise and his academics has
inspired many young students.  

“Kabaddi has helped many young men from
Navalgavhan and surrounding villages such as Satamba, Bhandegaon and Incha to
build their careers,” says Narayan Chavan. Like Kailas, this 21-year-old is
also preparing for police recruitment exams and kabaddi helps his physical
training and stamina. “We love kabaddi. We have played it since we were kids.”

Many small towns in Hingoli witness annual
kabaddi competitions for different age-groups. These are organised by the
Shripatrao Katkar Foundation and called ‘Matrutva Sanman Kabaddi Competition’. Manisha Katkar, the founder of Katkar Foundation organises these events along
with training of kabaddi trainers. The Foundation aims to work with rural
communities to promote local trade and business and prevent migration in the
long run. They are well known for the kabaddi tournaments in all talukas
of Hingoli district.

In 2023, Vijay Korde and Kailas Korde attended
one such 10-day training held in Pune. Today they train children and young men
in Navalgavhan. “Since childhood I have been fascinated by this sport and have
always tried to know more and more about it. I want these youngsters to train
well and play well,” Vijay says.

He feels that children here have great
potential and can play at national and international level. But they lack of
good facilities like an all-weather playing ground. “We can’t practise when it
rains,” Vijay says.

Vedant and Narayan also share their problems.
“We don’t have a ground. Like other players, if we can also train on the mat,
we will surely do well,” they say.

The tradition of kabaddi in Navalgavhan has not
given enough space for girls though. Many in the village play at the school
level but have hardly have any facilities or even a trainer.

Any outdoor sport like Kabaddi also brings with
it some challenges. Pawan Korade knows it all too well. 

Last year, on the day of Holi, matches were
held in Navalgavhan. The entire village had gathered to watch the game. Pawan
Korde was playing in the under 50-kg group. “I entered the opponent’s area and
dismissed a few players. As I was returning to my base, I suddenly lost my
balance and fell on my back,” Pawan says. He was badly injured.

Although he was immediately taken to Hingoli,
he needed surgery and was referred to a hospital in Nanded. The surgery was
successful but doctors cautioned him that he could not play like
before.  

“We were distraught when we heard this,” he
says. But he didn’t give up. After recuperating from the surgery, Pawan began
training. And after six months, he began to walk and run. “He wants to appear
for police recruitment,” says his father.

His entire medical expense was borne by the
Katkar Foundation.

Although Navalgavhan takes pride in kabaddi,
not all can pursue it. Vikas Korde had to stop playing as he needed to earn to
survive. “I loved to play kabaddi, but the economic crisis and farm work meant
I had to leave studies and also the sport,” says the 22-year-old. Vikas bought
a tempo last year. “I transport farm produce [turmeric, soyabean and fresh
produce] from my village to Hingoli and earn some money,” he says.

Navalgavhan wants to be known as a kabaddicha
gaon, a village known for its kabaddi. For its youngsters, “kabaddi is the
ultimate goal!”

Kabaddi is centrestage in Navalgavhan

کبڈی کا گاؤں نول گہوان

కబడ్డీ క్రీడకు ప్రాణంపెట్టే నవల్‌గవ్హాణ్

நவல்கவனில் கபடிதான் பிரதானம்

ਨਵਲਗਵਹਾਣ ਪਿੰਡ: ਜਿੱਥੇ ਰਗਾਂ ਵਿੱਚ ਵਹਿੰਦੀ ਹੈ ਕਬੱਡੀ

ନବଲଗଭନରେ କବାଡ଼ି ହେଉଛି ମୁଖ୍ୟ ଆକର୍ଷଣ

നവൽഗാവ്ഹാണിൽ കബഡി വീണ്ടും ശ്രദ്ധയാകർഷിക്കുന്നു

ನವಾಲ್‌ಗಾವ್ಹಾಣ್‌ ಈಗ ಕಬ್ಬಡ್ಡಿ ಕೇಂದ್ರ

कबड्डी का गांव नवलगव्हाण

નવલગવ્હાણમાં કબડ્ડી કેન્દ્ર-સ્થાને છે

कबड्डी के गाँव नवलगव्हाण

नवलगव्हाण के आपन कबड्डी पर गुमान बा

কাবাডি অন্ত প্রাণ গাঁ নওলগাভন

কাবাদীৰ কেন্দ্ৰস্থল এতিয়া নৱলগহ্বান

नवलगव्हाण गावासाठी ‘कबड्डी हाच अंतिम ध्यास!’

Navalgavhan

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Kabaddi is centrestage in Navalgavhan

The national sport of kabaddi is practised with vigour and full community support here in Marathwada. It’s also a ticket to state jobs. A story to celebrate National Sports Day held on August 29

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