Rummy and Drunken Jenga are passe—your intimate Diwali soiree needs games that are engaging, beginner-friendly and can act as ice-breakers. There are a lot of fun, quirky party games available that are easy to pick up and can engage friends or casual acquaintances for a good hour. So, if you’re hosting a game night as part of your Diwali house party here are a few groovy options to choose from:
Cards Against Humanity: Family Edition
If your heart is stuck on a good ol’ game of taash go with the all-new family edition of Cards Against Humanity which expands the horizons of the game and makes it more inclusive so both young and old guests can play. The premise is fairly simple, each black card has a sentence with a blank space that needs to be filled using a word from the white cards. The unexpected combinations draw big laughs. The company has released a digital version of the cards on its official website, so all you need to get your Diwali party going is to download and print them out.
Psssst... The traditional set is the real deal, especially if you’re hosting a wine and dine.
Social Humour
This card game takes a satirical look at the sticky social situations Indian relatives put us through. The game puts forward dreaded questions like ‘how much did you score in your boards?’ or ‘when do you get a new addition to this family?’ and allows you the opportunity to answer with truth-bombs that would never stand a chance in a traditional setting. This game is solely for adults above the age of 18 and at least 4 players are required to play. If use humour as a defence mechanism, you’ll thoroughly enjoy this!
Two truths and a lie
Two truths and a lie is designed like an ice-breaker although it should ideally be played by people who know each other at least a little because there’s a good deal of guessing involved. Each person reveals two truths and one lie about themselves and everyone sets on a mission to figure out the lie; subjects can include anything from favourite movies, pet peeves and childhood fears. The best part about this game is that it needs no equipment!
P.S: The last season of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills had a fun, and suspense-filled Two Truths and a Lie session in its second episode. Browse through the episode if you still need notes on the format.
Pictionary and/or Charades
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Pictionary and charades are great for gatherings where you need to keep a large group of people engaged for about an hour. For Pictionary divide the group into two, bring out a whiteboard and some markers. Pick between movies or songs and children’s nursery rhymes or phrases like ‘look before you leap’ for some rib-tickling artwork. If you’re playing charades instead of Pictionary pick out names of old Bollywood movies and watch your friends go nuts trying to act them out!