S Sahaya Hilda, who works at the Arumbakkam Metro, is delighted at the interruption. She normally spends all day scanning people’s handbags, blowing whistles and collecting tickets. For a change, she is playing Snakes and Ladders, a modern variant of paramapadam . “I am skipping all the venomous snakes and danger ladders that pull me down,” she says, rubbing her hands together in excitement and rolling the wooden dice. “Looks like luck is on my side today,” she laughs with child-like glee.
Like Hilda, many other staff and commuters are reliving their childhood thanks to Kreeda, an initiative headed by Vinita Sidhartha, a communication specialist-turned-entrepreneur. The organisation is taking games such as pallankuzhi, dhayakattam, nakshatra vilayattu and aadu puli aatam to the public, as a build-up to this year’s Madras Day celebrations. They will be travelling in a red car, its boot packed with games, across 70 locations, including metro stations, over the next 30 days.
“We have observed that many of the events that happen during Madras Day celebrations do not reach the outlying areas of Chennai. For a change, we decided to do a road show, where we will take these games to people in all corners of the city,” says Siddhartha. On road, they have been inviting all kinds of reactions — from sheer amusement to the bizarre — from spectators, says Sidhartha. “We have been holding sessions in orphanages, NGOs, offices and old age homes,” she says, adding that they are also working with differently-abled children, who have responded well to the games. “It can specifically help children improve motor skills and hand-eye coordination.” In Chennai Middle School, Arumbakkam, the games are a hit with the children. “Around 200 students took part in our games,” says Sidhartha.
Describing the origin of the games, many of which are rooted in the culture of Tamil Nadu, she says “You can find them in temple inscriptions.” Many have not been properly documented; though a lot has been communicated by word of mouth, especially the less popular ones such as nakshatra vilayattu and dahdi , originally a game from Andhra Pradesh, which is found mentioned in Tamil Nadu temples as well.”
These games are also markers of landscape and culture. “For instance, tamarind seeds are used in one board game here, while in Kerala the manjadikkuru is used. And along the coastal belt of Tamil Nadu, shells. These are not just games, but also tell stories about where they originate from,” states Sidhartha.
Her interest in them sprang from when she wrote a series on traditional games for The Hindu Young World . “I got a call from MCTM Chidambaram Chettyar International School in Alwarpet to take a class. I designed a game by drawing a chart with crayons. The teachers there suggested I take it to different schools. After this, I held a session at the Odyssey book store for about 30 kids, featuring five games.” Then she launched Kreeda.
The first Madras Day Kreeda event was held in a complex in Nandanam where the office is located. People from offices in the complex streamed in to play gilli dhanda . “They told me we should be having these sessions in the beginning of every month,” recalls Sidhartha.
So far, this year, almost 70 people took part in the event in Guindy Metro. Thirumangalam and Ashok Nagar metro stations saw a turn out of over 100 people each.
“A couple who read about our event played every single game seaetd on the floor the traditional way. Soon more people joined them,” says Sidhartha, adding that residents from retirement homes had the time of their lives playing the games that defined their childhood. “One of them told me they were like time machines, taking them back to their youth.”
At the station, between hurrying to catch their trains, people attempted to play a game. “One man said he has no time to play. And, then came running back saying, ‘I am anyway late. I will play a game and leave.’ We are so preoccupied by our busy lives that we forget to have fun,” smiles Sidhartha.
Kreeda travels with its games till August 26. The sessions in the metro stations are on till August 13. The schedule is available on Kreeda’s Facebook page. Email info@kreedagames.com.
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