Chennaiites gear up for Diwali with fun games of chance, as it is open season for the beloved taash party
Representative photo
The Festival of Lights is around the corner. As lamplights brighten up window sills and doors of Chennaiites, friends meet friends; families greet each other, huddle together and test their luck at games like poker, flash, black jack and more. Squabbles erupt, only to be quenched by laughter and mouths stuffed with food. It’s the season of joy — and finally good ol’ taash parties are back!
As revelries go, Diwali card parties place high on our list. Chennaiites are no stranger to it, as is evident by the sheer number of occasions occupying socialites’ calendars.
Playing cards, let’s not mince words — gambling during Diwali is something done in remembrance of the well-told story of Shiva and Parvati’s game of dice. Over the years, it has become something more — many in Chennai, in fact, celebrate taash parties on a large scale — with several tables set up for various games and over a hundred people attending. Other times, it is a small, cosy family affair with close friends. For Simar Kaur, a socialite and restaurateur in the city, Diwali spells just that. “It’s something different from what we usually do. Food and drink — it’s there at all parties. But at taash parties, close friends and family get together at somebody’s home, and we play all evening long. It’s a private affair,” Simar smiles, adding how just a week ago she hosted one in her house. “I have been here in Chennai since my childhood. It’s tradition now. In fact, I’m still learning my hand at the art.”
And it’s not just the ladies — the men have a blast too, catching up with some good-natured banter and swapping jovial stories. But one misconception that attaches itself to these parties is that gambling is a dangerous game. Pooja Malhotra, a socialite and event planner in the city, disagrees with this thought.
Pooja says, “We don’t believe in serious gambling. I love taash and I look forward to these parties during Diwali because it’s only during the season that we play for money — not always,” she says, adding that many small parties have already started in the city. “I like to play cards with my family. It brings a sense of togetherness that we enjoy. Yes, for some people it can be bad — especially when you don’t know how to stop. But, in the end, it’s all for fun — we keep joking around, talk, sometimes we fight — it’s a game and we’re all friends,” Pooja quips, and asserts that budgets are assigned especially for these games, and if you lose too much, you stop playing.
Nandita Bansal, another city-based socialite agrees with this thought. Having organised a grand taash party just a couple of days back, she knows that it’s all in good spirit. “We host card parties every year and we make it a pretty big event, for people who love to play cards. We set up card tables and it’s quite merry. It’s actually very safe,” she explains. “There’s no ‘gambling’ as such — we’re all close and there isn’t anyone we don’t know well. That way there are no disagreements. Also we have very small stakes,” Nandita says in conclusion.
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( Source : deccan chronicle )
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