Rolling with the Times

Ritika: “Avani, finish all your work before lunch today, it’s Saturday, we’ll sit and play Ludo 😁😁.”

Avani: “Yippeee Dippee Dooooo 💃💃!”

Vidhi: “No, dude! Today is Monopoly Day! 👊”

Anu: “Please! UNO! Pleaseeeeeeeee 😟😟”

Ritika: “Ok Baba! We’ll play all – We have Sunday as well 💓”

OMG! Some of the lovely days of my life!!

Ludo, Uno, Monopoly – these names were are music to my ears. I also have a taste for Carrom and Scrabble – but I usually don’t win in these.. So you know.. 😏 Then comes Chess (my dad’s favorite) that I don’t want to play and I won’t play 🙅 – if it involves the brain; it is not a game 😺!!

Let’s revisit some of our favorite indoor games today! 

Ludo

Derived from the Indian game Pachisi, it needs to have a minimum of 2 players and maximum of 4. The actual fun comes with 4 players. Entire board filled with all four colors and the joy that comes when it’s your turn to roll the dice 💃; the joy doubles when the dice brings a ‘six’ and triples when you get to cut someone’s gotti 😈. However, 💔 breaks when yours is brutally slashed by the other person. 

Snakes & Ladders

It is a bonus that comes along with Ludo 😻. Again a classic Indian contribution to the world for young and old alike 😀. While the rolling of dice defines your fate, the shrewd snake waits at the end to wreck your hard-earned race 😰. With a hot cup of tea and players with heads down, the one who reaches 100 first, receives the crown 👑. I still remember we never used to plan playing this game, it just popped up by chance when we were all done with other games or using it as time pass while waiting for someone. 

Uno

My personal favorite 💓. Play it anywhere anytime – though I have a lot of memories of ‘us’ getting thrashing while we untimely enjoyed this game (during office times 🤫). Contrary to what I said earlier, these games too involve the use of the brain – at least all are the play of numbers 😆. While trying to peep into our neighbor’s cards, we often missed shouting ‘UNO’ or ‘CATCH’ on time – and that’s when the game truly begins 😎!

Monopoly

Monopoly or Business or as we used to call it ‘Binness’ made our indoor Sundays a lot more fun than visiting malls or watching movies! The multiplayer game with a minimum of 2 players brought in a sense of responsibility of making every move cautiously and the victory gave a super Richie Rich feeling with holding a lot of money 💰 and owning huge properties. Impressed by the game that I was, I gifted the same to my dad on father’s day, on which he didn’t know what to say 😟!

I am sure many of us would have re-lived these moments recently during the pandemic-induced circumstances and lockdown. These are not just moments but pleasant rhythms ♫ that set a magical tune between family and friends. Be it momentary, these games make us forget the twists of life and be involved in the current time enthusiastically yet peacefully.

Having talked about the pandemic specifically, this change in everyone’s life did reveal some significant life facts and hacks we never even thought of at some time. In the end, the present era’s game is all about making the smart move and rolling the right dice. 

While the germs, pollutants, carelessness, uncleanness, and poor hygiene are the snakes 🐍 hyperactively waiting for you. You need to take control, hold the dice, and roll it to achieve your ‘health’ goal through the stairs 🪜 available in the form of masks, sanitizers, disinfection, and a good lifestyle that will take you to the finish point. 

We need to roll with the times 😎!

Avani Raj Arora