Keep calm and Wordle on

Would Wordle be such a hit if the world wasn’t in the grips of serious existential boredom? Probably not. Lately, life had reverted back to the lonely cycle of lockdowns and curfews, forcing us to rely on blinking gadgets and aimless scrolling. Play is essential for child development but what’s not acknowledged enough is that games are crucial for adults as well who need something to distract themselves from the harsh realities of their lives. Look no further than the enduring popularity of Crossword and Word Search. Putting in the effort to solve a puzzle, watching the letters flip to green provides a jolt of welcome satisfaction, at any age. On days when tedium feels overwhelming, these little victories see us through. A game like Wordle provides exactly that.

Enthusiasm is a hallmark of youth and one of the biggest challenges of ageing is finding something to be excited about. Unfortunately, the messaging we internalize in our careers is that when faced with high-pressure situations, the only acceptable outcome is to succeed brilliantly or not participate at all. There is a ridiculous premium on perfectionism than experience. It explains why the other bane of middle age, diets, is destined to fail. No normal human being, however determined to undertake a dogged slog, can stick to long spells of denial. If we used the Wordle approach — tough, not too tough — to other areas of our lives, we would be far more at peace. Instead, people are subconsciously divided into two categories, geniuses and workaholics; there is no space for people content with moving the ball just slightly ahead every day.

It is perhaps the lot of humanity that we dreamily imagine success as something transformative and beautiful. Like watching Rafael Nadal script history in an epic five-set match, to win the Australian Open. We are awestruck at his performance, not the process behind the creation of Nadal. The finished product is impressive indeed, but to get there involved unending practice and many painful hours of strengthening exercises. Such big wins are rare and only a chosen few experience them. Yet, in all our lives, there are many minor milestones worth striving for, which can recreate (albeit, smaller) Nadal-like thrills; like cooking a nice meal or exercising. We underestimate the value of incremental improvements, our preferred target being major breakthroughs, the kinds we watch in the Olympics and the Oscars.

Home-bound and bored, a lot of us rediscovered boardgames and old-fashioned entertainment in general, thanks to the pandemic. Monopoly reported a 21% jump in sales in 2020 and 21, clearly because people were looking for ways to spend their hours. A lot of my friends started learning bridge, enjoying the happy state of full absorption in a leisure activity, usually denied to adults too caught up with work. Personally, I rediscovered Scrabble. There is a presumption that someone who reads and writes for a living will be good at it, but actually the opposite is true. I am routinely thrashed by a far less articulate friend who uses ‘Q’ and ‘X’ exasperatingly well.

Losing, however, doesn’t diminish the joy I derive from Scrabble; I am optimistic the small tweaks I am making can turn the tide of the game.

(The writer is director, Hutkay Films)