Before the Internet, Xbox and Nintendo took over our lives, children used to actually go out (or stay indoors) and play with other kids. From board and card games to getting clothes soiled in the mud, play time never meant being glued to screens and exercising the thumb. Here are 10 games every Indian kid played while growing up!
1. Kho Kho
This homegrown tag sport was best played on a holiday, or during vacation when more kids were available to form large teams. The idea to tag the players of the opposite team in the shortest possible time made it super swift and oh so fun!
2. Seven Stones (Pitthoo)
Dismantling a tower of seven flat stones with a tennis ball and rearranging it before the opposite team members hit you back with the same ball, oh boy was this street game full of pace or what!
3. Bechki (Elastic)
It was Angry Bird in real time, except that you didn’t aim for birds – fruits hanging on trees and those annoying aunts and uncles (or their windows and cars) who kept complaining to your parents about your mischievous behaviour. Super-exciting!
4. Name-Place-Animal-Thing
The back pages of our notebooks were filled with columns representing Name, place animal and thing. Words starting with a particular letter fast occupied them and only when you could come up with unusual names did you earn your perfect 10.
5. Antakshari
A household favourite and all-time classic! Can’t remember a single wedding or family function where this game was not played. Be it boys vs girls or seniors vs youngsters – everyone got a chance to croon their favourite songs. So many feelings were expressed through the lyrics, as love was spoken through eyes. The fast action rapid-fire round made sure you thought faster than light.
6. Hide and Seek (Chhupa Chhupi)
This one made sure you knew every nook and corner of the street you played the game in. From hiding behind trees to burying under car covers to screening behind water tanks, every child had their secret hiding or safe tavern.
7. Truth or Dare
God alone knows how many secrets were revealed and risks were taken during this game. Precisely why everyone looked forward to it and is played by most youngsters in schools and colleges even today.
8. Chinese Whispers
It wasn’t about who won, but more about having a good, hearty laugh listening to the final version of the story that was passed through a line of people in whispers. Now isn’t this from where some of us picked our gossiping skills? 😉
9. Pictionary
Often played during off periods in school, utilizing the classroom blackboard or even the back pages of notebooks, it was a game of guessing and drawing pictures that made for a superb time killer.
10. Dumb Charades
Hilarious is the first word that comes to mind when you think of this game that involved explaining the name of a movie through gestures, facial expressions, and body language. Some of us were really terrible at it, weren’t we?
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