Antakshari recitation in India

This is part of a long series of Language Log posts in which we pondered the phenomenal memorization skills of persons of Indian heritage (see "Selected readings" below).

So you know what's happening in the following astonishing video, let me begin by giving a basic definition, etymology, and explication of what happens in this intricate word game:

Antakshari, also known as Antyakshari (अंताक्षरी transl. The game of the ending letter) is a spoken parlor game played in India. Each contestant sings the first verse of a song (often Classical Hindustani or Bollywood songs) that begins with the consonant of Hindi alphabet on which the previous contestant's song ended.

The word is derived from two Sanskrit words: antya (अन्त्य) meaning end + akshara (अक्षर) meaning letter of the alphabet. When these words are combined and an '-i' suffixed, the term means "The game of the ending letter". Due to schwa syncope in Hindi and other Indo-Aryan languages, Antyakshari is pronounced antakshri. A dialectical variation of the word is इन्ताक्षरी or intakshri.

Antakshari was originally present in the Ramayana, where rishis (sages) sang the first verses of bhajanas continuously by singing another Bhajana beginning with the last letter of the ending word.

The game can be played by two or more people and is popular as a group activity during commutes, and social gatherings. 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 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 ) with the recitation of the following couplet which varies, but usually has wording similar to –

बैठे बैठे क्या करे? करना है कुछ काम,

शुरू करो अंताक्षरी, लेके प्रभु का नाम!

Baiṭhē, baiṭhē, kya karē? Karnā hai kuch kām, Shurū karō antākshari, lēkē Prabhu ka nām!

Sitting here all bored, whatever shall we do?

Take the name of the Lord and start a game of Antākshari!

(source)

This is a performance by a group of girls who have memorized the Bhagavad Gita and are reciting verses with each new verse starting with the last letter of the previous verse.

It is evident that the girls are enjoying this cerebral pastime.

This reminds me of similar poetic games in medieval China and Japan where friends would entertain themselves by engaging in linked verse composition.  One person would recite a line, and the next person would recite the succeeding line by beginning it with the last word of the preceding line.

 

Selected readings

• "The stupendous powers of memorization in the Indian tradition" (10/23/20)
• "Spelling Bee 2019" (5/31/10)
• "The worldly sport of spelling" (6/2/18)
• “Spelling bee champs” (6/1/14)
• “Spelling bees and character amnesia” (8/7/13)
• “Brain imaging and spelling champions” (8/7/15)
• “Spoken Sanskrit” (1/9/16)
• "Once more on the mystery of the national spelling bee" (5/27/16)
• "Spelling bees in the 1940s" (7/10/16)
• "Yet again on the mystery of the national spelling bee" (6/5/17)
• "What happened to the spelling bee this year?" (10/21/20)

[Thanks to H. Krishnapriyan]