24 October,2015 06:18 AM IST | | Gitanjali Chandrasekharan
How many countries has Narendra Modi been to since May 2014? We played Bhaag Modi Bhaag to figure out
Bhaag Modi Bhaag
Our favourite Internet meme of the year has been the one in which a woman looks out into the wild and says, "If travelling was free, you'd never see me again". Below her is a picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with arms crossed across his 56-inch chest saying, "true story".
Ever since he became PM in May 2014, Modi has travelled non-stop. So much so that it's been a bit tough to keep track of which countries he's been to and what are the deals (tourism, defence, etc.) he has struck while there. Thankfully, there's now a game to help us with it.
Bhaag Modi Bhaag starts with Bhutan, the PM's first stop. Game play is relatively simple. An athletic version of the PM - more marathon training, less national yoga day - runs across a track lined with stationary sedans, MUVs, SUVs, barrels and crates. Your job is to get the PM to cross these hurdles even as you pick up deals along the way. It's a simple touch-jump-grab game that regular gamers should (since I am not one, I can only assume) find amusing and easy to play. I could follow the PM until his second stop, Brazil where Christ The Redeemer watched as I tried to help Modi, who got to ride a bike and a powdered skateboard on the track.
Ashwin Kandoi, CEO of Wingit Technologies
Difficulty levels increase along the track with the PM taking on speed and obstacles being thrown in his path with greater frequency. In each new country, he gets three fresh lives.
Our next stop (had we cleared Brazil), would have been the Himalayan kingdom of Nepal. Through the play, we would have travelled to America, and even Seychelles.
Ashwin Kandoi, CEO of Nashik-based Winjit Technologies which has been creating games inspired by Modi, Rahul Gandhi and Arvind Kejriwal since before the landmark general elections, says, "Initially, we had planned a game that sees him travel across India post the elections, but since his itinerary was packed with international destinations, we changed our plan." And, the background changes with each country.
Kandoi, 37, clarifies that his firm of just over 200 staffers is not affiliated to any political party. "In fact, we didn't want to publicise the games since we were wary of how fanatics would react, but all the games have been received well," he adds.
The game is available for free on Android and iOS and has been downloaded 50,000 times already. Modi's travels have been updated till September and, Kandoi promises, that the firm will keep updating, with each new visa that Modi acquires.
