It Takes All Sorts

Truly, it takes all sorts. It takes all sorts of people to make a world, takes all sorts of pieces to make a game. And behind every piece in our games, there is a person – one of our suppliers, each one with their own strengths, character, idiosyncrasies, pros, and cons. Many of them have been with us for years. They’ve helped us through tough times, held our hands when we’ve struggled. There are others who have fallen by. Those who merely saw themselves as vendors.  They were not a part of our journey, but merely someone who was there along the way, a ship that passed in the night. There are others we have lost to life and personal crisis. Among them, I would like to take this moment to remember Tamil.

Who was Tamil?  I wouldn’t call him a Carpenter.  He made many of our wooden pieces and painted them, but he was an artist at heart. He had ideas and we used him as a sounding board for many things we did. He knew materials, he knew what to do and how to get them done. Sadly, we lost him a few years ago due to his ill health. He was not the easiest of people to work with, he was moody, idiosyncratic, and difficult to reach. But he was definitely a pillar of strength for us. We miss him even today.

Honestly, when I started Kreeda, I had no idea that I would have to deal with so many people and have to be involved in so much nitty gritty work.  Let’s take the Pallanguzhi. I thought we would just pick up the Pallanguzhi from the streets of Mylapore and add rules and game pieces and sell them. Virtually the work of a middleman, but that was not to be.

When we first picked up the Pallanguzhi, we found that they were of very, very poor quality. So, we roped in Tamil to sand them down and polish them and get them smooth. Tamil was never someone who accepted anything less than perfect.

He came back to us and complained about the quality of the hinges and the clasp for those Pallanguzhis were foldable. We examined them and agreed that they were rusting badly. So, we replaced them with brass ones.

Having replaced them, we decided we needed to paint the Pallanguzhis. Enter Tamil again to paint them and make them festive and fun. When all this was done, we had almost doubled the cost of the Pallanguzhi. We still had to package it, add rules and add game pieces. Over time, we realized that we were better off making our own Pallanguzhis.

 As we started making them, the better understanding we had of materials. We also started to think of our games in terms of safety and sustainability. We realized that when the Pallanguzhi is opened and closed too many times, the hinges would come off exposing nails that are dangerous around children. So, we designed the flat open Pallanguzhi of Kreeda today.  

I think it has taken a lot to put our games together. It is seemingly simple, but every item needs thinking, planning, designing, and coordinating. Every game is the result of the work of almost a dozen people.  

We have come to respect these people for their knowledge and experience. People who stood by us. I still remember when we were going through a rough time, one of our smallest vendors called up and offered to wait for payment so that he could help us. On the other hand, we have had vendors many times our size, who refused to even supply the products until our payment was made in full. 

Well, it takes all sorts to make a game, to make a world and to make Kreeda come true. And if we are to recognize Kreeda, we must recognize every one of those who have come together to make it happen.