Us young generation of Desis, apart from our millennial issues have another major problem – mom and dad constantly asking us to get married. The family astrologers are our mortal enemies now, playing the solar system based Tinder for us.
While we agree that marriage is an integral part of one’s life, and especially arranged marriages are a major part of our culture, and are misunderstood across the world. Marriage is definitely an exciting journey – be it a choice of love or arranged.
Pakistani designer Nashra Balagamwala has introduced a new way to make people understand the system of arranged marriage – a board game! She has produced a board game about arranged marriage. With this, the world knows that her position on this matter is far more nuanced, especially those who assumed that she was against it.
The game is called Arranged!, and the way it has to be played is more interesting. The players of this game must do everything they can to avoid the matchmaker. The matchmaker is called “rishta aunty” which is moved by another player.
According to a report by Broadly, Nashra says that she wanted it to be an accurate reflection of Pakistani culture. Cards are drawn at random to make the game much more Dilchasp – cards like the runaway brides, with commands like “you want to pursue a career… move four steps.”
The players have to avoid the aunty at any cost – because if any of them land on the same box as the rishta aunty, they will face the concern of being married off to any of the male suitors who will be scattered around the board game. However, even though the chances of that happening are pretty low, there is a brighter aspect too – there is a chance to marry a suitor that the player has chosen for themselves!
Nashra also told the media that this talking about this is one of the most difficult things to do for her. As for her own arranged marriage, she told Broadly that she is going to keep fighting her way out of it till she meets someone who she would actually want to marry.
Nashra shared how this game changed her life, in a conference in Florida recently. Watch.
[Photos: Nashra Balagamwala]
