Antakshri also known as Anthyakshari is a spoken parlor game played in India, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Nepal. Each contestant sings the first verse of a song (usually a Bollywood song) that begins with the Hindustani consonant on which the previous contestant's song selection ended.
Contents
Etymology
The word is derived from two Hindi words:
- Sanskrit Antya (अन्त्य) meaning End (adjective)
- Sanskrit Akshar (अक्षर) meaning letter of the alphabet
When these words are combined and an '-i' suffixed, the term means "The game of the ending letter".
Its known as Anthyakshari same as Sanskrit only in Telugu and no other Indian language. Due to schwa syncope in Hindi and other Indo-Aryan languages, Anthakshari is pronounced
Rules
The game can be played by two or more people and is popular as a group activity during commutes, bus rides etc. The first singer has to sing two complete lines and then s/he may stop at the end of those or following lines. The last Hindi letter of the last word sung is then used by the next singer to sing another song, starting with that letter. The winner or winning team is decided by a process of elimination. The person or team that cannot come up with a song with the right consonant is eliminated if their opponents can produce such a song.
The game is often kicked off with the consonant /m/ (म or م) with the recitation of the following couplet which varies, but usually has wording similar to -
Baithe, baithe, kya karein? Karna hai kuch kaam,
Shuru karo antakshri, leke prabhu/rabb ka naam!
Popularity
It started as a family pastime. Now there are several TV shows and competitions all over India based on it. The classic style is where two or more teams sing songs which start with last consonant letter of the song sung by previous team. When a team sings a song they earn points.
A popular Indian television program by the same name has run successfully on Zee TV for over 10 years. Annu Kapoor was the permanent male host while female hosts included Durga Jasraj, Renuka Shahane, Pallavi Joshi, Shefali, Rajeshwari Sachdev & Richa Sharma . Contestants have ranged from school and college-goers to housewives, professionals and celebrities. Mr.Gajendra Singh is known as the Creator of Musical Reality shows in India, Talent Scout extraordinaire’ and a true Visionary who revolutionized the Indian Cable TV scene. He is the man behind conceptualizing 'Antakshari' as a TV show and creating history. The team names of the Zee TV show are Deewane, Parwane, and Mastane.
Example
आ चल के तुझे, मैं ले के चलूं, इक ऐसे गगन के तले
जहां ग़म भी न हो, आँसू भी न हो, बस प्यार ही प्यार पले
(Movie: Door Gagan Ki)
This song ends with ले (le), i.e. the consonant /l/ ल. The next contestant could sing -
लग जा गले कि फिर ये हसीन रात हो न हो
शायद फिर इस जनम में मुलाक़ात हो न हो
(Movie: Woh Kaun Thi)
Example
Kehne ko jashn-e-bahaaraa hai,
Ishq yeh dekh ke hairaan hai,
Phool se khushboo khafa khafa hain gulshan mein,
Chupa hai koi ranj fiza ki chilman mein.
(Movie: Jodhaa Akbar)
The next song should begin with /m/ (the 'n' in mein is only a nasalization rather than a complete consonant, similar to bon/good in French):
Mai zindagi ka saath nibhata chala gaya, Har fiqr ko dhuen mein uraata chala gaya,
Barbadiyon ka sog manana fizool tha, Barbadiyon ka jashn manata chala gaya.
(Movie: Hum Dono (1961 film))
The next song should begin with (y) and so on.
Related games
Bait Bazi is a related game played with Urdu poetry instead of movie songs. Several word chain games also resemble antakshri in their basic methodology.