This is the second of two blog posts about Ganjifa cards. In the first, I showed sample cards from my own deck (which I bought from a playing card museum in Germany), suggested suitable English names for the eight suits, and shared some thoughts on how to shuffle them.
In this sequel, I’ll describe a game I’ve invented especially for Ganjifa. For the international deck of cards we’re all familiar with, there are hundreds of games of many different types, each type radically different from the next. But the traditional playing cards of India have never proliferated in the same way, and far fewer games are played with them (even those few are difficult to find information on). This need not be the case. I propose we enrich the potential of Ganjifa cards by inventing new games, taking inspiration from games that use the familiar deck of hearts, diamonds, spades and clubs, and changing them to take advantage of a deck with twice as many suits and cards that are circular instead of rectangular. They are surely worthy of the attention. Also, let us build on each other’s inventions to create families of related games.
The game described below is inspired by the Eights family of games, though it lacks the wild cards that give that family its name. It’s a game that could never have been invented with rectangular cards, because the layout of six cards in a ring with a seventh in the centre depends upon a symmetry you only get with circular cards. Being simple, it’s suitable for players who are new to Ganjifa and still learning to distinguish the often visually confusing cards.
One thing I’ve not been able to invent is a good name for the game. It really wants to be called Bridge, but someone else has already invented a card game with that name! I welcome suggestions. Also, I’ve not yet had a change to test it by playing with other people, but that doesn’t matter. If I need to change or clarify anything, I can always update this post, and sharing the rules now lets people around the world take part in the testing process. I realise not many people have access to a deck of Ganjifa cards, but I hope this post will reach some people who do, and perhaps inspire others to get hold of some. Please tell me if you have any comments, for example if anything in these rules is unclear.
My Ganjifa game, as yet untitled
Preliminaries and Deal
The game is suitable for 3-6 players. I’ll assume that play proceeds in a clockwise direction.
Throughout the game, cards are played to seven distinct positions on the table. Six of these positions form a ring (we’ll call them Positions 1 to 6, proceeding clockwise), and the seventh is in the centre of that ring (we’ll call this Position 7).
Six cards are dealt to each player, and another card is dealt face-up to Position 7. The remaining cards form the stock.
Normal Play
The first player, if able, selects from their hand a card with either the same suit or the same rank as the card on Position 7, and places that card face-up on Position 1. If not able to do so, the player picks up a card from the stock, and the opportunity to play to Position 1 moves to the next player.
In the normal course of the game, each player seeks to play a card with either the same suit or the same rank as the most recently played card, and does so by placing it on the next position around from that previous card. So if the previous card was played on Position 1, you play on Position 2. If the previous card was played on Position 2, you play on Position 3. Position 7 is not ordinarily played to, so if the previous card was played on Position 6, you play on Position 1, and round it goes.
A player must play if able. Because an infraction of this rule is virtually impossible to detect, the game relies upon players’ honesty.
A player who is unable to play picks up a card from the stock. But because a very large hand is not much fun, I suggest an optional rule: that if a player already has nine cards in their hand, they don’t pick up, but simply pass. In a footnote, I will address the question of what to do if all players end up with nine-card hands.
Special Play
So far, I have addressed only what happens in the normal course of the game, but it is the extra-ordinary moments that are really what it’s all about. We must now discuss some special moves that are available to players when the opportunity arises.
First I must make it clear that when I refer to two cards as directly opposite each other, I refer simply to the layout of the six outer positions. The card currently sitting on top of Position 1 is directly opposite the card on Position 4, and vice versa. The card on Position 2 is directly opposite the card on Position 5, and vice versa. The card on Position 3 is directly opposite the card on Position 6, and vice versa.
A player may play a card to Position 7 if that card not only shares its suit or its rank with the most recently played card, but also shares its suit or its rank with the card directly opposite the most recently played card. Such a move I will refer to as building a bridge, because it connects two opposing positions, metaphorically speaking.
Moreover, a player may play two cards in a row if the second one builds a bridge, the first having been played in the usual way. Be sure to plan both moves before performing the first, as failure to do so is at least a breach of courtesy.
After a bridge is built, all cards played so far are gathered up and taken out of the game. The player who built the bridge begins a new phase by playing any card to Position 7, and if able, playing another card with the same suit or rank to Position 1. (The first card to be layed down is deemed to be the one at Position 7.) Normal play resumes with the next player’s turn.
Winning
A player wins by getting rid of all cards in their hand. Specific ways to win include:
- Using up your last card during normal play.
- Using your last card to build a bridge.
- Building a bridge with one card remaining (as this would be used to start the next phase).
- Building a bridge with two cards remaining that share a rank or suit (as these would be used to start the next phase).
Tips
This is not a game of deep strategy, but there is some scope for thoughtful play.
- If the previous player’s card matched the rank of the card before, you might want to match the suit, and vice versa. If four cards of equal suit or rank are played in a row, the ends of this series will be directly opposite each other and then any other card of the same type will be able to build a bridge. You probably want to prevent this, because the player who stands to take advantage of it probably won’t be you.
- Pay attention to which cards have already been played, so that you know which suits and ranks are still mostly out there. Sometimes you’ll want to play a card that an opponent is likely to be able to follow, and sometimes not, so it’s good to be able to predict which is which.
- It’s useful to have a few cards in your hand that could be played one after the other, largely in case you have a chance to build a bridge as well as to increase that chance, but also because it happens sometimes that your opponents won’t be able to play. On the other hand, it’s also useful to have cards from as many suits and ranks as possible, so there’s a trade-off.
Footnotes
If you’re using the rule that players don’t pick up if they already have nine cards, and all players end up with nine-card hands but are still unable to play, here’s what I suggest you do.
The player who most recently acquired their ninth card takes another card from the stock and places it face-up on the table, repeating this until a card is turned up that’s suitable to be played. Cards that are turned up but not suitable take no further part in the game.
Once a playable card is found, the player uses it to continue the game as though it were a card from their hand. (As usual, they may then build a bridge if able to do so immediately thereafter.)
