Playing with words

On World Scrabble Day, three avid fans share strategies and their love for the game

Anyone who knows the thrill of making a word on a ‘Triple Word’ grid in Scrabble will understand why the board game has endured for over eight decades. Alfred Mosher Butts is the architect who created it in 1948 and April 13, his birthday, is now marked as World Scrabble Day. It might seem at first that the game is all about scoring the maximum number of points per word. But three avid players tell us how it’s also about strategy, and share their Scrabble memories.

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By the book

I remember how Scrabble was a part of my childhood, when I’d play with my parents, grandparents and cousins. Back then, everyone would be accused of making up words and a dictionary would be brought out to check the validity. That was a big part of the game. But you can make words by fluke online, just randomly arranging letters. I usually spend time in between turns thinking of two or three different words that I can make with the same combination of letters, so that I have options if the opponent blocks one of the moves.
- Kahini Panjabi, 31, musician

Dad’s the way

There are two ways of playing the game. One is the way my dad plays it. He always goes for a big word and doesn’t care about strategy or winning the game. His joy comes from making the big words, when he could have maybe used just two letters and got more points, or not opened up a triple-word opportunity. This is, of course, not a strategic method, but then he is playing purely for the joy of making the big words. I try never to leave a triple-letter grid open next to a vowel, because that can prove to be costly. 
- Keshav Naidu, 40, branding strategist

Child’s play

I have recently started teaching Kabir, my four-year-old son, the different letters of the alphabet using Scrabble tiles. Playing on an actual board, instead of online apps, is much harder because you’re actually making genuine words. When I play Scrabble online, I just use random combinations of letters sometimes, hoping that something will click even if I don’t know what the word means. Always try to place the big letters on the bonus tiles, or at least block your opponents from doing it.
- Abhijit Chakraborty, 39, entrepreneur

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