CHENNAI : When was the last time you made befriended someone you did not have a mutual friend with?” asks Krishna Murari, who along with Bhargav Prasad and Vishak Ayappan founded Draw Four, a fortnightly meet-up of strangers for games, conversations and music. The team recently curated its fifth secret gaming gig.
Meeting new people, creating friendships beyond the usual social circle and having real conversations have become difficult these days, says Krishna. “We wanted to bring in a set-up which involved all of this, but in a gamified format,” he explains. The meet-up, of 12 people every edition, not only brings 20-year-olds from different walks of life through a super strong curation but also ensures the invitees would at most know only three of them and allows everyone to meet at least 10 new people.
The group organised its first event in August 2017, and three meet-ups later, the activities came to a standstill due to several reasons. “I had moved to Bengaluru, and we couldn’t find a place to host the event. But, after a sabbatical we have resumed our meet-ups. It is usually conducted in a public place/café and the venue remains a secret until we send out the invites,” he says.
The games are a blend of both, board and table-top games like Mafia, which simulates conversations. “From the way people introduce themselves to how they break the ice, it’s all gamified. For instance, in our previous meet-up, we had a fun ‘judgment game’ where people had to guess the other person’s profession. The games are usually not too heavy on their mind and allow the board gamers to have fun,” he says.
(The next meet-up will be held on September 23. For details, visit their Instagram page: Draw.Four)
Pick a song
All the invitees are made to refer a friend for the next fortnight’s event. Event Playlist: All invitees pick a song each from YouTube, and it plays in the background throughout the event. The playlist link is later sent to everyone. Invitees are referred to as ‘bored gamers’.