Nostalgic fun games for senior citizens

Senior citizens were recently treated to a day of great fun as they participated in a game of songs organised by the Senior Social Committee of Nairobi’s Visa Oshwal community.

It is a noble and praiseworthy initiative by the committee to serve and applaud the seniors of the community, and give them an opportunity to indulge in the popular Indian party and fun time game ANTAKSHRI.

In the musical pastime, a participating team member starts the game by singing the first verse of a Bollywood song and the opponent picks up the last word of the verse to sing another song beginning with that word. The picking up of the last word cue and singing fun continues until a participant fails to find an appropriate song and loses the game.

The senior citizens comprising four participating teams enjoyed singing as they became nostalgic of the days when they were young, and Bollywood songs reigned supreme with melody and poetical content. But these days, the songs are infused with western pop beat, a far cry from the raga based compositions to the dismay of the older generation.

After the delights of the ‘Funtakshri’ session and soul awakening moments of musical nostalgia, the organisers treated the seniors with a sumptuous traditional Kathiawadi vegetarian lunch to conclude this admirable show of respect, love and care for the adorable senior citizens.

Writing about Antakshri and the party game of Bollywood songs, another similar game based on verses from Urdu and Hindi poems, readily comes to mind.

This literary fun game is known as BAIT BAZI, and it is extensively enjoyed by poetry enthusiasts across South East Asia, particularly in ndia and Pakistan. The game starts with the first person reciting a stanza (bait) of a poem. The next participant has to reply with another verse starting with the last letter of the verse read by the previous player. A verse that has already been used in the game may not be repeated.

Bait Bazi is a popular fun game amongst enthusiasts in Pakistan, where it is also featured as a television show. Here, participants from schools or colleges take part in the game to illustrate their poetical and literary skills, and compete for attractive prizes.