The Carrom Comeback: A Nostalgic Game Revitalized Across Generations

SINGAPORE: First introduced to carrom when he was six, life eventually got in the way for 23-year-old Syed Muhammad Ammar. “My dad used to play carrom when he was younger. He decided to play carrom with us and that’s where I picked it up,” he recalled. “I used to play almost all the time when I was younger, but when life progressed … it was an on-and-off thing.” The spark was reignited during a hall freshmen welcome night at university. “I was very excited when I saw carrom in uni. Then, I found out that the halls competed against each other in the inter-hall recreational games,” the Nanyang Technological University (NTU) student said. A year later, Mr Syed became team captain. He hosts weekly training sessions and organises friendly matches with players from other NTU halls. “I’ve been very active in carrom, teaching my new hall players how to play carrom, how to strategise in the game,” he said. Carrom is a tabletop game where players use a striker disc to sink smaller coloured pucks into pockets. To win, they need to sink all their assigned colours – either black or white – and the red queen puck before their opponent. “Interestingly, carrom is a very popular recreational game in uni. I think it's because it is a very easy game to pick up," said Mr Syed. "THEY REALLY GET HOOKED" On a Saturday afternoon at the Association of Carrom Singapore headquarters in Marymount, the clack of carrom pucks cuts through hushed whispers. Gleaming trophies stand waiting for the winners, but players pay these prizes no heed for now. Their fingers streaked with chalk, all focus is trained on the boards in front of them. Established in 2020, one of the association's goals is to develop the game in Singapore. President Vijay Anand said carrom has become more popular in recent years. “During the kampung days, there were a lot of people who played carrom. And many people have childhood memories of playing carrom, and having carrom boards at their home,” he said. “It's picking up again, and people are interested to come back to the carrom board.” The association's membership has grown significantly from 40 in 2022 to about 200 today. To cultivate this interest, the association has partnered with various Residents’ Networks to start groups across Singapore at locations such as Bedok, Yishun, Punggol and Bukit Batok. It is also in discussions with other community centres to set up more groups. “Hopefully within the next few months, we'll have seven or eight interest groups spread across the island,” said Mr Anand. Carrom’s appeal cuts across generations, Mr Anand added. “Yes, (older people) enjoy it a lot because they have nostalgic memories from their kampong days, and they want to just relive the beautiful moments that they had as kids,” he said. “But also for youngsters, this is something that once the people start coming and playing, they really get hooked on to it.” Another of the association's goals is to showcase Singapore's talent internationally. At the 7th Carrom World Cup in the Maldives, which concluded last month, Singapore sent a team of 17 players. Lenus Paul and Ramanpreet Singh Pahwa clinched bronze in the men's doubles event, Singapore's first-ever medal at the tournament. "STRESS RELIEVER" For 19-year-old Akella Rama Santosh Srikar, carrom provides a way to destress from academic pressures. "Carrom was one of my 'stress reliever' hobbies," he said. "Carrom doesn't challenge me very physically, I can just stay at home ... it's very accessible." Compared to other tabletop games like chess, it is less "mentally draining", he added. "Carrom is simply just relaxing. That attribute got me into carrom. "You can easily get lost in time while playing carrom. Sometimes when I'm stressed from school, I would go into the recreational room (in hall), and play carrom for three, four hours," added Mr Syed. For young people new to carrom, there is also the novelty factor. Edits of trick shots on TikTok often rack up thousands of views. "A lot of them haven't heard of it and they get intrigued," said 21-year-old Sruthika Joseph. "(At events) it was the elderly who were joining, and then the youths and now people want their kids to join." Ms Sruthika was introduced to the game by her father Joseph Jiffy, who is the association's secretary-general. "I used to do sports back then and I didn't really have a thing for (these kinds of games). My dad said: 'Just try, it's like playing pool but with your fingers'," she recalled. Those who play carrom say some misconceptions remain about the game. "(People) say there's no strategy in it, but I completely disagree," said Mr Srikar. "If you look at professional carrom players, there's a lot of strategy involved, there's a lot of creativity. "I really like puzzles. The fact that carrom is a strategic game makes it so much more interesting," added Ms Sruthika. What sets carrom apart from other tabletop games is that it requires good hand-eye coordination on top of strategic and mental elements, said Mr Anand. "Kids get hooked on it because they find it difficult. They want to excel ... (and that) actually motivates them and they keep coming back to learn," he added. What Mr Srikar has learnt over the years is the importance of patience. "If you rush any shot, you will never pocket it," he said. "You need to be very calm." And where he used to get comprehensively beaten at the carrom table by his mother, things have changed. "(Now) I give her a much bigger challenge. She doesn't clean sweep me anymore," Mr Srikar said. "I've even won some games against her."