A GAMING TRADITION

The intricate, towering gopurams, the cooling granite stone, the smell of chandanam, flowers, and the sound of chants – temples are often sacred spaces associated with devotion.

- 

Each pillar, post, or stone of temples, churches or dargahs harbors history, and narratives of the fall and rise of civilizations and religion.

A peek into history, Mylapore's Kapaleeshwarar Temple – situated in the center of the city – draws families and children praying fervently during exam season, or the elderly ambling carefully.

Beyond mere spaces of worship, temples hint at a long tradition of communities' means of socializing and interacting.

Since 2009, Vinita Sidhartha of Kreeda Games has documented over 15 traditional, folk games of Tamil Nadu etched out on the stone of Kapaleeshwarar temple.

From Aadu Puli Aatam, the game of three tigers and fifteen goats, to Kattam Vilayattu, the square game, each grid, scrawl, flower, and curved line hint at a rich heritage of calculation, games, leisure, and untangling puzzles.

"Games have this charm because everyone is a child at heart, it appeals to the innate child. They are interwoven with our lives itself.