If it's Tuesday, it's got to be scrabble!

Members of city's Scrabble Club know, for sure, their word's worth

Fun learning need not apply only to kids. Every Tuesday, Scrabble enthusiasts join the Scrabble Club at the Poona Club from 7 pm to 9 pm for a game of words. The founder members of the club, which was started in 1998, include president Manju Pai, treasurer Neena Shahani and secretary-cum-committee member Romilla Thakur.

The only criterion to join the club is love for the game and members include students, teachers, IT professionals and even retired citizens. "After Manju and Veena attended a tournament in Mumbai, we placed an ad in the newspapers and hired space at the Poona Club," said Romilla, a corporate trainer.

The club soon gave out the space for free to make the Scrabble Club more active.

"Every September, we hold a two-day all-India tournament," added Romilla.

It's game
Neena Shahani, an art curator, said, "Scrabble is my passion. If it's Tuesday, it's got to be Scrabble."

Some members see the game as a potential intelligence booster. Priya Karkhanis, an insurance
management professional, said, "Scrabble is meditation. It improves time management, resource management, proj-ect management and competition tracking."

Another Scrabble enthusiast, Aruna Grover, never misses a tournament and is totally involved in "Scrabble-tracking". Her son Udayan stood fifth at an international tournament that took place at Sri Lanka this month.

Practice helps one master this word game. Milon Nag, a businessman and member, said, "Thanks to Manju and Romilla I took up scrabble as a challenge. I play only once a week at the club."

Nag was engrossed in a game with Caryl Gonzalvez, an ex-teacher at St Mary, who added, "I even practice by myself at night."

Priya Kshirsagar (21) is the youngest member of the club. "I have been playing at the Scrabble Club for five years and it has improved my vocabulary," said Kshirsagar.

Manoj Manwani, a real estate consultant, said, "My neighbour taught my sister Sanam and me to play scrabble when we were young. I joined the club out of interest."

To join the Scrabble Club, callu00a0 on 9371030834