These Games of Goa were almost forgotten, until now …

Today’s kids will never know what it’s like to be playing outdoors all day till sunset when it was time to come in. Before Play Stations and XBoxes, games were physical or mental and required a great degree of activity. It was not uncommon to see kids in the lane between houses or in the balcony playing marbles or seven tiles, running around and screaming - it contributed heavily to the sounds of the village. These sounds are unfortunately becoming increasingly rare, but Dattaprasad Shetkar along with Soul Travelling is looking to change that with the Games of Goa Festival.

Bringing back memories

Set to happen over the weekend of February 23 and 24, the Games of Goa Festival is an attempt to bring back more than memories. It aims to bring families and friends together to compete, have fun, and most importantly, keep this important part of our culture and heritage alive. In fact, the organizers are calling for teams of up to 20 members to register to take part in the games at the SAG Ground in Campal, Panjim, and win tons of exciting prizes.

Logorio

Game of knowns

Over 15 indoor and outdoor games are scheduled to be showcased over the two-day Games of Goa festival. While some of these are team sports requiring strategy, wit, and stamina, others can be played alone or in pairs, and require nothing but skill. Here are a few games that you can expect

• Logoriyo: Similar to Seven Tiles or Seven Stones, Logoriyo is played using seven coconut shells that are stacked. The aim of the game is to be able to break the tower (usually with a ball) and then rebuild it before getting hit by one of the opponents.
• Goddyaani: Similar to playing marbles, the general idea of the game is where players flick their marbles with their thumbnail and try to hit the target. Another version is where players try to hit each other's marbles out of a target zone.
• Koinde Baal: Goa’s version of Gilli Danda, this ancient game which originated in India over 2500 years ago is played in the rural areas and small towns all over South Asia as well as Cambodia, Turkey, South Africa, Italy and in some Caribbean islands like Cuba. The game is played with two sticks: a large one called a danda which is used to hit a smaller one, the gilli.
• Bodyaani: This is a game that is very similar to hopscotch.

And many more …

• Taablaam/ Taabul Fale
• Gud Fale / Gajre
• Tiktem
• Waagaani
• Badyaani (sticks)
• Vhiraani (broom sticks)
• Mithaa Khel / Mith Fale
• Khaambyaani (pillars)
• Biyaani (cashew nuts)
• Kovchyaani (bangle pieces)
• Sune aani haad (dog and bone)
• VeTaani
• Ringaani
• Cricket with Piraadyache bat

If you’d like to take part in any of the games being played at the Games of Goa Festival, you can register your team by calling Soul Travelling on 7378301863, or Dattaprasad on 7020793498. The event starts at 10am, and will be on all day till 8pm. Visitors to the festival can expect music performances by renowned Goan artists like Varun Carvalho & Rise Nation, a feast of Goan food and snacks, and memorabilia like fotaas, gofin, aate, jhopale.