A week before Chennai’s first ever beer pong event, organiser Ankit Prasad told us that they were already booked out. The 27-year-old who spent the last two years conducting similar events all over the country — from Mumbai to Pune to Delhi to Indore shared incredulously, “This is the first time we’ve had this happen so I’m pretty excited.” Perhaps the ‘prizes worth 1 lakh tag’ had something to do with it, though we couldn’t be sure since Ankit reveals, “About 80 per cent of the people who sign up have no idea how to play, they just want a taste of something new.” Well, that and the beer— let’s be honest. Here’s how the game works. A team of two players attempt to throw ping pong balls across a table into an opponent’s cup filled with beer. Back and forth they go for a while, until the losing team has to finish whatever beer is left on the table. In case you’re wondering— that’s five pints between four people (two teams) per round.
After spending a few years pursuing Management Studies in Toronto, where the game is a big part of social circles, Ankit was inspired to bring the format to India and started putting together three-hour long open-sign up tournaments to the tune of 64 teams per competition (at two people per team, that’s 128 people) under the banner of his event management company Civiva Entertainment that he co-runs with partner Niraj Dhiliwal. “It wasn’t just a drinking game, I realised this brought people together with lots of conversation and engagement, and that’s what I wanted to do,” says Ankit. Eleven editions in and the participation continues to soar—from IT professionals to college goers to newly weds looking for a fun way to get out and have a good time. In terms of safety precautions, Ankit let’s on that multiple measures are in place. “First up, we call every single participant before the event to ensure they have a ride back home.” This is apart from the last shot of the night being a hangover drink for everyone and a 45 minute break between rounds for participants to work off their buzz.
Also don’t lose any sleep over not being sporty enough to land a slam dunk. The best part of this game is that the losers get all the beer!
At The Metroplace Hotels. On September 23. 6 pm. Winner takes home Rs 15,000 and runner up gets
Rs 5,000. Details: in.bookmyshow.com