A Sunday at the boards
Our grandfather stood in the same spot for decades, near the halfway line, close enough to hear the players call. He named the ponies before the commentator did and never sat down until half-time. When we were small we thought polo was a game about horses. It took us years to see it was really about the city remembering itself.
The sound first: you hear a match before you see it. Hooves on dry turf, the crack of cane on a hard ball and a commentator who seems to know every player's grandfather.
- The crowd: old men in tweed, young women in silk saris and sunglasses, army officers, children on shoulders and visiting players from across the world.
- The mood: relaxed and friendly. Jaipur polo has a grand reputation, but on most afternoons nobody minds who you are.
- The light: the low winter sun slides behind the far goal, and the last chukka is often played in pure gold.
- The tea: samosas, sweet chai and gossip at half-time. It is as much a part of the afternoon as the game.
- Why it matters to us: a polo afternoon is one of the few public places where the Jaipur of the maharajas and the Jaipur of today stand side by side on the same grass.
The maharaja who made Jaipur a polo city
A rider first: Man Singh II came to the throne of Jaipur in 1922 and grew into one of the finest players of his age, rated at ten goals, the top of the handicap scale.
The 1933 team: he took a Jaipur side to England with Rao Raja Hanut Singh, Rao Raja Abhey Singh and Prithi Singh, and they swept the major tournaments of the season.
- The player
- Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II
- Ruled from
- 1922
- Rating
- Ten goals, the game's highest
- His home
- Rambagh Palace, a hotel since 1957
- Died
- 1970, after a fall at Cirencester
- The cartoon: Punch marked the summer with a drawing of an elephant charging, which Jaipur families still mention with quiet pride.
- The ground: he laid out a vast polo ground beside his residence, Rambagh Palace. The Rajasthan Polo Club still plays there each winter.
- The palace becomes a hotel: Rambagh opened to paying guests in 1957, one of the first palace hotels in India, and the Taj group has run it since 1972.
- The end: he died in England in 1970 after a fall while playing at Cirencester. In Jaipur, older people still lower their voices when they speak of it.
- See the trophies: the City Palace museum keeps polo cups, team photographs and portraits. Ten minutes there before a match changes the whole afternoon.
Gayatri Devi and the polo years
Who she was: a princess of Cooch Behar who married Man Singh II in 1940 and lived with him at Rambagh, beside the polo ground.
A sportswoman: she rode, hunted and loved horses, and the photographs of the polo years show her at the boards as often as the players.
- Public life: she was elected to Parliament from Jaipur in 1962 and served several terms. That public role is part of the city's history.
- Her school: she founded the Maharani Gayatri Devi Girls' Public School in Jaipur in 1943, which still educates girls today.
- Her memory at Rambagh: the palace remembers her and Man Singh II in its photographs, its polo bar and its gardens.
- How we talk about her: as our grandparents did, with admiration for her public life and no interest in gossip. Our guides are briefed the same way.
An older game than any palace
Persian beginnings: riders hit a ball with sticks across Persia and Central Asia for centuries before the game reached India.
The Mughal game: the emperors played it as chaugan, and the Delhi sultan Qutb-ud-din Aibak is said to have died in a fall during a game at Lahore in 1210.
- Roots
- Persia and Central Asia, centuries ago
- Mughal name
- Chaugan
- Manipur
- Sagol kangjei, the north-east's own game
- First British club
- Silchar, Assam, 1859
- Calcutta Polo Club
- 1862, still playing
- Manipur's gift: in the north-east, Manipuri horsemen kept their own form alive, sagol kangjei. British officers and tea planters learned it there.
- The British clubs: they founded a club at Silchar in 1859, and the Calcutta Polo Club in 1862, which still plays. From there the modern game spread to England.
- Why the princes loved it: it rewarded nerve, horsemanship and teamwork, the old virtues of Rajput cavalry, in an age when cavalry charges were over.
- Jodhpur led first: Sir Pratap Singh made Marwar famous for polo in the late nineteenth century, and his riding breeches went round the world as jodhpurs.
- Then Jaipur: by the 1930s Jaipur had overtaken its neighbour, and the two houses played each other for generations. Read about the Rajput dynasties behind both teams.
Who plays in Jaipur today
The 61st Cavalry: raised in 1953 from the horsed units of the old state forces, it is based in Jaipur and is India's horse-mounted cavalry regiment. Many of the country's best players have ridden for it.
The cavalry ground: tournaments are also played at the regiment's own ground, often with its riders in the teams.
- The Jaipur team: the former royal family still fields a Jaipur side, led in recent seasons by Sawai Padmanabh Singh, the head of the family, who plays tournaments in India and abroad.
- Army and civilian teams: regimental sides, business-sponsored teams and visiting players fill the winter calendar.
- Women players: polo is no longer only a men's game, and women now compete in Indian tournaments, including in Jaipur.
- The ponies: mostly thoroughbreds and crosses chosen for speed and quick turns. Rajasthan's own Marwari horse is a desert cavalry breed, prized more for endurance than for polo.
- The trophies: many cups were presented by princely families and regiments generations ago, and each carries a story the commentator will happily tell.
Reading a match in five minutes
The shape of the game
Four a side: number one attacks, number four defends, two and three link them. The best player usually rides at three.
- Chukkas: periods of about seven minutes, usually four to six in a match, with short breaks between.
- Fresh ponies: players change horses after every chukka, so each team brings a whole string.
The rules that matter
The line of the ball: the player following it has right of way. Most whistles are about someone crossing it dangerously.
- Riding off: players may push each other off the line, shoulder to shoulder, at full gallop. It is thrilling to watch from the boards.
- Hooking: a defender may catch an opponent's stick mid-swing. Listen for the crack.
- Right hand only: every player holds the mallet in the right hand, which keeps play predictable and safer.
The numbers
Handicaps: players are rated in goals, from minus two to ten. Team totals set the level of a tournament.
- Ends change: teams switch direction after each goal, sharing the sun and the wind.
- The ground: a full field is roughly the size of nine football pitches, which is why play sweeps from end to end.
Half-time
- Treading in: spectators walk onto the field to press back the divots the hooves tore up. Children adore it.
- Tea and talk: the moment for a samosa and a word with the players' families on the lawns.
Words you will hear at the boards
Chukka or chukker: both spellings are used. It comes from a Hindi word for a round.
Syce: the groom. The syces bandage legs, plait tails and walk the ponies cool, and they are the quiet heroes of every match.
- Chukka
- A period of play, about seven minutes
- Syce
- A groom who cares for the ponies
- Stick and ball
- Practice hitting, alone or in pairs
- Ghoda, ghodi
- Horse and mare in Hindi
- Pony lines: where the ponies wait, saddled and ready, between chukkas. Visit before play starts.
- Throw-in: how play starts, with the umpire bowling the ball between the two lines of players.
- Penalty: a free hit after a foul, from a set distance depending on how serious it was.
- Bell: rung to warn that a chukka is ending. Play continues until the ball goes out or the final bell.
- Khamma ghani: the Rajasthani greeting. Older players and officials enjoy hearing it from a visitor.
How we plan a polo afternoon
Matching your dates: fixtures are often confirmed only weeks ahead, so if polo is the reason for your trip, tell us before you book flights.
A good place: a shaded spot by the boards or in an enclosure, wherever the club welcomes guests.
- A guide who knows the game: someone who can name the ponies, explain the fouls and tell you whose grandfather played in which year.
- The pony lines: a walk among the syces and ponies before the first chukka, which many guests enjoy more than the match.
- A private chukka: for groups and celebrations we can approach the clubs about an exhibition game. It depends on the season and players, and our page on a private polo match explains how it works.
- For riders: stick-and-ball sessions with a qualified coach, for confident riders only.
- Tea afterwards: on the Rambagh lawns, or in its polo bar, hung with photographs of the golden years.
What to wear and bring
Smart and comfortable: linen, cotton, a sari or a long dress. A jacket or shawl for when the sun drops.
Flat shoes: heels sink into the turf, especially at half-time when you tread in the divots.
- Hat and sunglasses: the low winter sun shines straight into the stands in the late afternoon.
- A long lens: phones rarely catch the gallop. Shoot from the corners of the ground, away from the halfway crowd.
- No flash, no drones: both can startle the ponies.
- Small notes: a tip for the syces who show you the pony lines is customary. Our guide to money and tipping suggests what is usual.
When to come for polo
December: the season usually begins, with cold mornings and bright afternoons. A polo afternoon makes a lovely festive outing, and our Christmas and New Year journey includes one when fixtures allow.
January: the heart of the winter, with Makar Sankranti kites in mid-month and the Jaipur Literature Festival. Book hotels early.
- February: clear skies and big tournaments. Many of our regulars think it is the best month of all.
- March: the season winds down as the heat builds.
- April onwards: no polo. The ground is hard, the ponies rest and the monsoon softens the turf later. Visit the City Palace trophies instead.
- Jodhpur in December: Marwar has its own season, so a polo lover's week can take in both cities. See our polo and horses page.
- The full calendar: our page on the Jaipur polo season and our guide to Rajasthan in January have more.
What most visitors miss
The morning practice: on many winter mornings, players exercise their ponies on and around the grounds. Watching quietly with chai is more intimate than any final.
The changeover: a player leaping from a tired pony to a fresh one between chukkas, sometimes barely touching the ground.
- The umpires: two ride in the thick of play. Follow one for a chukka and the fouls suddenly make sense.
- The old spectators: ask your guide to introduce you to someone at the boards. Jaipur's regulars love telling newcomers about the matches they saw as children.
- The grooms' camp: behind the lines, syces cook, mend tack and rest near their ponies through tournament weeks. Ask before you visit.
- The wedding mare: in the same season, grooms ride to their brides on decorated mares. If you hear a band in the lane, look out. Our journal on Rajput weddings explains.
Who will love a polo afternoon
Horse lovers: the pony lines, the syces and the speed of the turns will be a highlight of the whole journey.
History lovers: Man Singh II, the 1933 tour and the cavalry bring the palaces you visited that morning to life.
- Families: children love the half-time divots and the ponies, as long as they stay behind the boards and never walk behind a horse.
- Couples: polo in the gold light, then dinner at Rambagh, is one of the most romantic days in Jaipur.
- Riders who want more: add a dawn ride from a village fort such as Rohet Garh, or several days on our Marwari horse safari.
- Less suited: anyone who dislikes standing outdoors or crowds, or who is travelling between April and November, when there is no play.
Where polo lovers stay
Rambagh Palace: the home of Man Singh II and Gayatri Devi, with the polo ground next door and a bar full of trophies and photographs.
- Jai Mahal Palace: an old residence of Jaipur's prime ministers in Mughal gardens, a short drive from the grounds and calmer in the evenings.
- The Oberoi Rajvilas: spacious and quiet, a little further out, for guests who want deep rest between outings.
- Umaid Bhawan Palace, Jodhpur: for the Marwar season in December, in the palace whose museum tells the story of the city's teams.
A polo day, the way we would plan it
Morning, the trophies
- The City Palace museum: polo cups, portraits and photographs of the 1933 side, seen at opening time before the groups.
- Then a slow walk: through the old city, past Hawa Mahal, to work up an appetite.
Lunch, light
- Where: a garden lunch at your hotel, or near the grounds at Rambagh.
- What: something light. You will be on your feet all afternoon.
Afternoon, the match
- Arrive early: the pony lines first, then your place at the boards.
- Half-time: tread in the divots, then tea and talk on the lawn.
Dusk and dinner
- After the last chukka: tea as the shadows race across the turf.
- Evening: dinner at Rambagh, or a quiet supper at Jai Mahal Palace in its gardens. Our luxury hotels in Jaipur guide compares the city's palaces.