The school bell rang. Recess at last! We rushed
out of the classroom. I took the 'gulli ° out of my satchel before I ran out.
Khushal took the ' c l a n d a a n d followed me. Panna, Raghubir,
Brijpal, Prakash, Kaushal, Bishen, Nityanand,
all dashed out, followed by others. We reached
the ground outside our school compound where we usually played.
Prakash drew a big circle. Khushal entered it.
It was his turn to begin the game. He placed the
'gulli' in the centre of the circle, and took the
'danda to strike the gulli. The others took their
positions round the circle. Everybody's eyes were
on Khushal. He struck the 'gulli' hard. It flew out
of the circle and went quite far. None of us could catch it.
Nityanand was the first to reach the 'gulli'.
Picking it up, he threw it back with all his strength.
Khushal struck hard again. It went flying in another direction.
Bishen was fielding that side. He tried to catch
"Short stick used in the game of tip-cat (gullidanda).
" S t i c k used in the same game.
it but it slipped through his fingers. He picked it
up and threw it back towards Khushal. Khushal
once again hit it back. It was my turn next. But the way Khushal was
hitting I felt my turn would never come. I would
have to wait till the next day. I was hoping Khushal
would miss just once. Then I would be able
to start. But Khushal was proving too good a player for us.
Then Panna threw the 'gulli to Khushal. It did
not even reach the circle. Khushal struck it forcefully
towards Brijpal. Brijpal could not catch it
either. It should have been an easy catch. I cursed
him for missing it. Brijpal was also sorry foi
the slip. But what could he do now? He flung the
gulli back with a vengeance. Khushal didn't miss this time either.
The 'gulli was now flying towards me. I was
ready to catch it. But it never came!
All of a sudden there was a lot of noise. A man
in kurtci* pyjama was standing in the middle of
the play field. His turkish cap was lying on the
ground, upside down. The 'gulli seemed to have
hit the cap on its way to me. The wonder of it
all was that the 'gulli' had landed inside the cap.
The man was furious. "You naughty boys! See,
what you have done. I will teach you a lesson," he shouted.
"Long loose shirt worn with pyjamas.
Khushal took the ' c l a n d a a n d followed me. Panna, Raghubir,
Brijpal, Prakash, Kaushal, Bishen, Nityanand,
all dashed out, followed by others. We reached
the ground outside our school compound where we usually played.
Prakash drew a big circle. Khushal entered it.
It was his turn to begin the game. He placed the
'gulli' in the centre of the circle, and took the
'danda to strike the gulli. The others took their
positions round the circle. Everybody's eyes were
on Khushal. He struck the 'gulli' hard. It flew out
of the circle and went quite far. None of us could catch it.
Nityanand was the first to reach the 'gulli'.
Picking it up, he threw it back with all his strength.
Khushal struck hard again. It went flying in another direction.
Bishen was fielding that side. He tried to catch
"Short stick used in the game of tip-cat (gullidanda).
" S t i c k used in the same game.
it but it slipped through his fingers. He picked it
up and threw it back towards Khushal. Khushal
once again hit it back. It was my turn next. But the way Khushal was
hitting I felt my turn would never come. I would
have to wait till the next day. I was hoping Khushal
would miss just once. Then I would be able
to start. But Khushal was proving too good a player for us.
Then Panna threw the 'gulli to Khushal. It did
not even reach the circle. Khushal struck it forcefully
towards Brijpal. Brijpal could not catch it
either. It should have been an easy catch. I cursed
him for missing it. Brijpal was also sorry foi
the slip. But what could he do now? He flung the
gulli back with a vengeance. Khushal didn't miss this time either.
The 'gulli was now flying towards me. I was
ready to catch it. But it never came!
All of a sudden there was a lot of noise. A man
in kurtci* pyjama was standing in the middle of
the play field. His turkish cap was lying on the
ground, upside down. The 'gulli seemed to have
hit the cap on its way to me. The wonder of it
all was that the 'gulli' had landed inside the cap.
The man was furious. "You naughty boys! See,
what you have done. I will teach you a lesson," he shouted.
"Long loose shirt worn with pyjamas.
