Ganjifa or ganjappa cards are the traditional playing cards in India. Their history is shrouded in a haze.

Pundit Hariprasad Shastri, a well known historian claims ganjifa (It is only in Orissa it is called ganjappa) began between the 8th and 12th century AD in Mallabhum (now Bankura in West Bengal) which was an independent Buddhist kingdom for a millennium.

Rudolf von Leyden, the author of ‘Ganjifa – the playing cards of India’ claims it was largely an offshoot of Mughal influence. Ganjifa is mentioned in the Babarnama and Ain-I-Akbari. Abu’l Fazl in the Ain-Akbari describes two sets of cards – an eight suited and a twelve suited pack. The twelve suited pack he describes in detail suggests a pre-Mughal origin with its Sanskrit nomenclature : ashwapati, gajapati, narpati etc.

Inevitably, local myths abound: in Sonepur they say ganjappa is named after its inventor, a man called Ganjapada . In Parlakhemundi, near the Andhra / Orissa border, they say the game is called ganjappa because it was invented in Ganjam district. Simanchal Bindhani in Parlakhemundi relates an interesting tale about the origin of ganjappa . A king’s son fell ill and would not recover. His fever would recur every ten hours. Finally, the vaidya (doctor) who cured him, Harikrishna, devised this game – he divided eight colors, which were all that were available to him at the time, into ten symbols, added a king and minister and instructed the prince to play the game. The prince was soon cured. The king was delighted and wanted the cure to be immortalized. He instructed his subjects to play the game on Makar Sankranti and Dassehra so it would never be forgotten and it is played even today.

Traditional playing card centers dotted all over North and South India declined rapidly in the 19th century, as the markets were flooded by inexpensive printed cards exported from Europe and later from Japan. Today, Orissa is the only living center for traditional playing cards where ganjappa is played for recreation, though here too it is on the decline. There are artisans making cards in other areas, like Bankura in Bengal and Sawantwadi in Maharashtra, but these are mainly for tourists, exporters and collectors, rather than for play by the local population.

The process: tamarind seeds are roasted and ground and then layered with old cloth and dried in the sun - in Bankura they also layer it with clay that gives it a harder consistency - once the base is prepared, they begin painting on it.

How to play
A pack contains 48 cards in 12 groups of 4 each.
Ace: 4 malla kings
Two: 4 wrestlers
Three: leaves
Four: conch shells
Five: flowers
Six: cushions
Seven: swords
Eight: fruits
Nine: flowers
Ten: plums
11th: horseman
12th: elephant rider
In a group of 4, cards are cut by the person on the right after shuffling and one card dealt to each player from right to left. Then the person on the right is given another card.If s/he gets more than 17 s/he loses the stake and throws down the cards.If s/he gets 17, s/he wins. If less, then s/he has the option of demanding another card or allowing cards to be given to others. If nobody gets 17 nobody wins. If someone gets 2 horses, 2 elephants, 2 aces and 2 twos they win.

Research credits: Vasudha Joshi