![]() There is a saying that "India lives in its villages". Most people have mobile phones, I suppose that is the way to go for disseminating information. The only way that Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh (state) Bridge associations can keep them updated is by way of normal post. Unfortunately, there is no internet facility with computer at the village, so e-mail communication is not possible. I was told that there are about 300 to 400 people who know the game and about 200 regular players in this village of about 5000 people. I do not know who was responsible for getting them to participate in the first place, whoever it was, the entire bridge community should be thankful to him or her. The best performers at Indore were one Mr Mulchand Jawra and Mr Kemal Verma who, after being -7 IMPs at the end of first session (they were sheepish when they admitted that they were slighlty overawed in the first ever tournament they played), pickedup +43 IMPs in the second session to finish with a tally of +36 and a respectable 21st out of 79 pairs who participated. None of the villagers have ever played a tournament before, they didnt know that we existed!!!īy now I am sure you must be curious to know just how good they play. What a contrast, this years Indore tourament was the first time ever in India when all the boards were computer dealt and multiplicated, and scoring was done by Bridgemates at all tables with VU Graph for the team KOs. They had no clue on the scoring systems we used, or even the right way to score a hand in Contract Bridge. They admitted that all play for enjoyment and passing time. I do not think they have a system document, they probably follow the age-old and time tested method in India - by word of mouth - from one generation to another. Bidding system as taught by the mystic Khan Saab is preserved pristinely maybe with some local advancements. None of the modern advances in the game is even known there. They play a strong club system with weak NT and two level natural minor openings. Some more details were revealed on conversation. He is now no more, so we do not know from whence he came or how he got to know the game. It is known that Bridge was taught by a teacher (called Khan "Saab" - a school Master named Khan) at the local school. Most old timers remember Bridge being always played there. Origin of Bridge at this village is shrouded by passage of time. Those who are not able to get there play informally at multiple "chowpats" (literal translation - where four roads meet) as casual games. They have an old building which is empty where the serious ones get together and play. ![]() Many people who are 30 years or more and have primary school education (all Men folk only) play Bridge here. Bridge was played even before his birth in this village. ![]() Here is the story as was told to me by one Mr Ramesh Mukati, aged 40 years. They must have got up at an unearthly hour of about 3:00 am, caught a bus to the district headquarters at Khargone (about 20 Km from the village) and then another bus to Indore to reach the tournament venue at 9:30 am. Most of them were local farm owners or farm labourers. On enquiry, we found that they had come from a village called Raibeedpura belonging to the Khargone district of Madhya Pradesh (part of the old Indore kingdom). ![]() These were 8 pairs of never before seen players who appeared on this Sunday morning. All of them were from this village about 200 Km from Indore city. There was a side event for the non-qualifiers.Īs we walked into the venue, we were all surprised to see a few gentlemen in rustic village dresses. 23 out of about 130 pairs who participated would play the IMP Pairs finals. It would have passed by as another prize money tournament and gathering of Bridge friends, that day being the last day of the tournament. It was a cold and misty Sunday morning on the 9th. The tournament itself was named after one of the most famous rulers of this dynasty and sponsored by the Kalani Industries. From Jan 6th 2011 to Jan 9th 2011, some of us partcipated in a high prize money (Rs 11 lakhs or about $25,000 total prize money) tournament at Indore, the capital of erstwhile Holkar Kingdom.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |