Pitthu Game is quite popular in India and is also famous as Seven Stones or Lagori in other parts of the country. It is an ancient game that involves seven stones and one ball which is played by 2 teams in an open ground.
The stones are placed one above another in stack form and the structure is called Pithhu. The larger size stone would be at the bottom and the smaller size stone at the top. On the other hand, there is a cotton ball that is used to knock down the tower of seven stones from a given distance.
The knockdown team first hits the pile of stones and later they have to rebuild the Pitthu structure exactly as it was before while the other team’s job (called Defenders) is to hit each member of the knockdown team with a ball. If the knockdown team fails to rebuild the Pitthu, the other team gets a chance to play the Pitthu game.
So, this game is quite interesting, and entertaining, and can be played anytime in an open space with 7 stones and a ball. Let’s know more about the Pitthu game like rules, stones shape, ball type, points, winner and loser, etc.
What is Pitthu Game?
The game of seven stones which is played in 2 groups (Group A and B) with a ball called Pitthu. In this game… 7 stones are used, placed in the center of the ground and all these stones are hit by a group with a soft ball.
Once Group A successfully knocks down the tower of stones, its objective is to rebuild it exactly as it was. Meanwhile, Group B members try to prevent them from rebuilding by hitting them with the ball.
If a Group B player tags a member of Group A with the ball, that player is out. If Group B manages to eliminate all members of Group A before they can rebuild the tower, Group B wins the game and earns the next turn.
Alternatively, if Group A succeeds and rebuilds the tower of 7 stones in the same order as it was before, then Group A wins and gets the next turn.
Pitthu Game Rules
The rules of the Pitthu game are quite simple and easy to learn. But as a beginner… you must know about these rules to avoid any type of conflict.
- Rule 1: This game is played with 7 Stones. The bottom one stone size should be big, and the top one stone size should be small. In short, all 7 stones will be slightly smaller in size than the previous one.
- Rule 2: All 7 stones are stacked one on top of the other in descending order of size.
- Rule 3: The ball that will be used in this game, should be soft. Hardball is not recommended as it can injure someone badly.
- Rule 4: Create the stack of stones in the middle of the ground, so the players of groups A and B can move easily and get time to rebuild the tower.
- Rule 5: Do a toss and decide which group will first knock down the tower of stones, and who will defend.
- Rule 6: The team who will knock down the tower, has to knock the tower with the softball from a distance. The distance from the tower to the knocking point can be from 3.5 meters to 5 meters.
- Rule 7: This is regarding the turns, usually a team gets 3 to 5 turns, depending on whatever you have decided at the beginning of the game. So here a team member takes the opportunity and knocks the tower with the ball. As a captain, you can distribute the turns between 2 or 3 players.
- Rule 8: Again, if Team A, fails to knock down the stack, the turn usually goes to the other team (Team B), allowing them a chance to attempt the game.
- Rule 9: Once, team A knocks the tower with the ball, they have to rebuild the tower as fast as they can. Simultaneously, the objective of Team B is to eliminate every member of Team A by tagging them with the ball. In short, at the beginning the ball is used by Team A… but later it is used by Team B.
- Rule 10: If Team A succeeds and builds a tower of stones then Team A wins… But if they fail to do so, which means Team B has successfully eliminated all the members of Team A, then Team B wins.
How the game of Pitthu is Played?
So, as you are aware of the rules and know very well How many stones are used in Pitthu Game? What’s the shape and size of all stones? What type of ball is recommended? You are all set to play the game in an open ground.
This game can be played between 2 players or 2 groups. And who will first get the turn will be decided by the toss. So, once you are ready, the ground is read, tower of stones is built in the middle of the ground. You can proceed with a toss.
Take a coin and toss it in the air and decide who will first knock down the tower of stones.
Once it is done, knock on the tower of stones with a softball. Make sure the distance between the tower of stones and the point from which players throw the ball (the knocking point) is generally around 10 to 15 or 20 feet (3.5 to 5 meters).
The knockers get 3 to 5 chances to knock the tower, if Team A fails to knock the tower, the turn typically goes to Team B to try their luck.
Suppose Team A knocks on the tower, now here the objective of Team A is to rebuild the tower, while the objective of Team B is to eliminate each member of Team A by tagging them with soft ball before they can finish rebuilding the tower.
Based on that, a winner is decided. If Team A succeeds and builds the tower (even the single member left) …, Team A is the winner. But if Team A fails to rebuild, then it means Team B is a Winner because Team B has eliminated all players of Team A.
Final Words
This is how the game of Pitthu is played. It is quite popular in various parts of India as Dabba Kali in Kerala, Lingorcha in Maharashtra, Saat Pathar in Bengal, Ezhu Kallu in Tamilnadu, and Lagori in Karnataka & Maharashtra.
In other countries, Pitthu is also known as the Seven Stones game, Pittu Garam in Pakistan, Satu Tiang in Indonesia, Teekri in Nepal, Seven Rocks in Afghanistan, Seven Tiles in Srilanka, and Steinticker in Germany.
Would like to share any memory regarding the Pitthu? Please let us know in the comments and don’t forget to share with others.
