‘Kitki’ merging maths and science concepts with board games
Husband-wife duo Pramod Ponnaluri and Rohini Deepthi took a calculated gamble when they decided to dive into the world of experiential learning for kids
Hyderabad: Roll the dice and you may land yourself on one of Jupiter’s moons while chasing robbers in space, that’s what you and your kids get when you bring home a board game from Kitki.
Quitting cushy jobs in 2013, husband-wife duo Pramod Ponnaluri and Rohini Deepthi took a calculated gamble when they decided to dive into the world of experiential learning for kids and started their company Kitki.
Pramod recalls, “Both of us didn’t have any background when it came to learning games. We started by conducting curriculum-based workshops and field visits in schools to see how kids applied what they learnt practically. How to get them to think without making it tedious was the idea.” The duo observed that learning was still seen as tiresome and racked their brains to make it fun. They then decided to make games that allowed kids to learn concepts practically while learning subtly.
Basing off geometry, they first created a game called ‘Three Sticks’ where each player gets three sticks in every round and has to build a triangle using these sticks and then using more sticks, add other shapes around that first triangle. As the game progresses they have to work with bonuses and obstacles thrown in their way. What encouraged the duo was the success of a crowdfunding campaign they started on the site Indiegogo where they raised Rs 6.20 lakh.
“It also brought us our first orders from different countries. So we knew that we were on the right track and there were people interested in such games,” he says.
Using Rohini’s graphic designing background, Kitki came up with other games – Samrat, a strategy-war game based on Delhi Sultanate’s history, Mind Your Number, a number deducing game, Escape E.V.I.L that requires players to collect different magic tricks involving chemicals, Fossil Wars Dinosaurs, where kids have to assemble fossils according to factors like food habits, age and Space Pirates that uses laws of motion and turns players into cops and robbers chasing each other between Jupiter’s moons.
“Each game takes about four to six months to design. We then test the game play and see if it’s as engaging as we originally planned,” says Pramod. Most games are suited for children aged eight years and above, but even adults can enjoy them. The company has since added more members to its team who ideate, design and create the final board games.
The games are available online on Amazon and the couple is now working on their online store which will go live soon.
“The pandemic meant more orders for such games as people are working from home and are spending more time with their kids. Such games have become a good starting point for kids to learn simple concepts of maths and science,” he adds.
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