It’s 8pm on a Saturday. My friends and I are queued outside a door, with a bunch of 16 to 40-year-olds, awaiting our turn to be called inside. Disclaimer: This is not Berghain or another exclusive nightclub, or a blockbuster show or an iconic restaurant. We are at Gameistry, a board game cafe in Chennai.
This scene is proof of the city’s burgeoning board game scene. And it is not just Gameistry, most other gaming lounges too are brimming with enthusiasts through the week, especially on weekdays.
Prem Sagar Sharma, marketing head and store manager at Gameistry, feels that Chennai may have more gaming lounges than most cities. Off the top of his head, he lists out at least eight including Zolives, Game On, The Board Room, The Board Game Lounge... “Board games are addictive once you start playing them. We stock almost 1,400 games here,” he says pointing to a floor-to-ceiling shelf packed tightly with boxes. The topics are diverse: from setting up townships and building engines and railway tracks to dishing out meals, grabbing sushi, and solving crime.
