The times we live in. Where everything comes packaged.

I was at the toy store looking to buy a toy Jeep for my son. After being able to identify cars
like the Alto, M800 etc, he has recently discovered the Jeep genre of automobiles and I
thought it would make a nice gift for him.

I find a Jeep with the MRF colors on it - a co-branding exercise between the Indian tyre
giant MRF and Funskool, the toy-maker. It costs around 150 bucks & comes with spare
petrol tanks. Looks cool, doesn't it ?


Purchase done, I walk around looking for anything else that might be interesting.
Remote control cars have always been a big weakness of mine, but I decide to wait
a year or so before buying another one. Reason being that the Ferrari R/C car that
I bought a few months ago has already been bashed up by my son. So, it would be
wise to buy the next one only when he understands how to use it.

As I head to the checkout counter, I see this packaged game hanging on the wall.
The name says "Pithu" and I am instantly transported to my childhood, when we were
staying at Sibsagar (Assam state) and have spent many an evening playing this game.


And back then, you did not buy this game from the store. You instead gathered the stuff required to play it, yourself. All it needed was 7 tiles and a rubber ball. It was not tough
to find 7 pieces of tiles at a time when asbestos roofing sheets were the norm. Or you
could even use flat stones. And all kids had atleast one rubber ball.

My memory is kind of faint when it comes to the rules of the game. I do remember that
you piled up the tiles and then from a distance had to hit the pile with the ball. It used to
be great fun then, though that opinion was not shared by my Dad, who disapproved of
sports in general and such pedestrian games specifically.

So, while playing the game on the road in front of our home, we would keep an eye on
the far-end of the road for my Dad's Jeep as he returned from work in the evening.
And as soon as we saw it approaching, we would leave the game midway & rush home.

Today some entrepreneur got the idea that he could put together 7 pieces of plastic and
a ball in a packet and sell it as a toy. And I am sure many a parent would get this for their
kids, especially those like me who have played this game in their childhood.