Aug 06
One of the most popular pages on my site is the one about Dumb Charades. I remember from back in school/college that dumbcharades was one of the most popular games played within a group, of course next to Antakshari. Another game very popular in India (and, as i found out, very popular in Cyprus too) is the game of Tambola. It is also known as Bingo or Housie.
When i was working/staying in bangalore, our apartment used to organise Bingo once a month with the tickets priced at 2 rupees each. We used to be 5 guys (fresh from college s/w engineers) staying together. While other bought 1 or 2 tickets each, we used to go and buy 10 to 15 tickets each , virtually dictating the way the event was conducted. Others didn’t complain, for we contributed to the big prize money in the pool. But, more often than not, we cornered most of the prizes due to the heavy probability in our favour.
I have been conducting Bingo sessions in our outdoor events at work for few years now. I do it a bit differently and as far as i know, it has been well received. Traditionally Bingos (or is it Bingoes) have cash prizes for the first five, the three rows and a full house, the cash prizes coming from the sale of the tickets. In the tambola events i organise, i do give out cash prizes, but also lot of other small gifts which can be souvenirs, fridge magnets, tshirts and pracically anything else which is not so expensive. If i do manage to get sponsors, then the big gifts come out. So, if you are organising a bingo, try to get a budget for it and then buy many small gifts and give them out apart from the cash prizes. if you don’t get a budget, make a guess as to the amount of money you will collect and then pre-buy gifts for that amount.
Now that you have so many gifts, how are you going to give them away if there are only 4 prizes (3 rows + 1 full house)? This is where you have to do things differently. i have given below the list (in random order) of all bingo “events” for which i have given away prizes. You can pick and choose from the list below based on the number of gifts you have, your interest level in organising the event, the time available for the event (more the prizes, more the time ) and the interest level of the players.
When i was working/staying in bangalore, our apartment used to organise Bingo once a month with the tickets priced at 2 rupees each. We used to be 5 guys (fresh from college s/w engineers) staying together. While other bought 1 or 2 tickets each, we used to go and buy 10 to 15 tickets each , virtually dictating the way the event was conducted. Others didn’t complain, for we contributed to the big prize money in the pool. But, more often than not, we cornered most of the prizes due to the heavy probability in our favour.
I have been conducting Bingo sessions in our outdoor events at work for few years now. I do it a bit differently and as far as i know, it has been well received. Traditionally Bingos (or is it Bingoes) have cash prizes for the first five, the three rows and a full house, the cash prizes coming from the sale of the tickets. In the tambola events i organise, i do give out cash prizes, but also lot of other small gifts which can be souvenirs, fridge magnets, tshirts and pracically anything else which is not so expensive. If i do manage to get sponsors, then the big gifts come out. So, if you are organising a bingo, try to get a budget for it and then buy many small gifts and give them out apart from the cash prizes. if you don’t get a budget, make a guess as to the amount of money you will collect and then pre-buy gifts for that amount.
Now that you have so many gifts, how are you going to give them away if there are only 4 prizes (3 rows + 1 full house)? This is where you have to do things differently. i have given below the list (in random order) of all bingo “events” for which i have given away prizes. You can pick and choose from the list below based on the number of gifts you have, your interest level in organising the event, the time available for the event (more the prizes, more the time ) and the interest level of the players.
- Anyone with the number 1 on their ticket. If all players have bought the full column, change it to – Anyone with number 1 on their topmost ticket – i usually start off with this one giving all the ppl 1 cent/1 rupee as a prize!
- Apart from the three rows, you can also give a prize for the first 4 columns i.e. the first and the last number on the first and the last row.
- If you are playing Bingo with a group of really enthusiastic people, you can also add prizes for the 5 columns on a ticket. Each column is not defined as the column appearing on the ticket, but as the respective numbers. Eg: 1st column would be the 1st number on each row irrespective of where the numbers actually are.
- It will be a morale-booster to also have a unlucky-one prize for the one who is the last to get a number on his ticket.
- If your group contains people of both sexes and of different ages, you can give prizes based on boys/girls or kids/parents/grand parents etc i.e a prize to the kid with the most/least number of numbers marked on a ticket.
- You can also play around with mathematics (if you have people buying an entire column) such a 1 number in 1 ticket, 2 numbers in another ticket and 3 numbers in another or any such combination.
- You can give prizes for combination of numbers in the rows i.e. 1 number on a row, 2 on another and 3 on the other.
- While selling tickets, give discounts to people buying the entire column ( 6 tickets). This will encourage people to buy the set which gives you more options to give prizes.
- Giving away absolutely junk prizes in the middle will keep the audience entertained. Eg: After giving away lot of prizes, the person to receive a prize will be looking forward to a goo prize. Then you can suddenly call for a combination which you expect many to have and call all of them to get a prize. You could then give each of them a chocolate or something equally silly!
- If you run out of allocated prizes for the first session on Bingo towards the end, but people are still interested, you can always give out free tickets for the next session as a prize.
Hope these tips help you in organising a good game of Bingo!
Btw, if you don’t have the cards to play, you can check this post for a link with which you can print Bingo cards for free.
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March 2nd, 2009 at 9:31 am
hey,
Need soft copy of tambola tickets to print and play in house during functions.
any idea where can I get???
bye
srini
March 4th, 2009 at 7:20 pm
hi i need the information regarding the rules and terminology used like fullhouse king’s corner etc…..pl. send me ..thanks
March 13th, 2009 at 11:46 pm
Thanks… Link was useful…
July 3rd, 2009 at 2:21 pm
I also conduct tambolas.. I would like to know some call phrases to precede the number to be called. like e.g., “walking stick No.7″ , ” two little ducks 2 and 2 twenty tewo” etc. etc. My think tank is running dry and I woulfd like to add some new phrases to my list to entertain my friends.
Thanks
July 6th, 2009 at 5:15 am
hi i need the information regarding the rules and terminology used like fullhouse king’s corner, Bamboo etc…..pl. send me ..thanks
July 20th, 2009 at 4:22 pm
hi i need the information regarding the rules and terminology used alongwith call phrases to precede the number for an interesting conduct of the game…..pl. send me ..thanks
July 23rd, 2009 at 1:10 pm
hi i need to know call phrases to precede the numbers …thanks in anticipation….
August 1st, 2009 at 6:20 pm
hi manjeet..i never used the cliched call phrases ..just the regular number calling will do ..you can innovate by going for new and strange combinations and by giving out lot of prizes!
August 27th, 2009 at 10:09 am
pl let me know kings corners and queens corners
ashok
August 28th, 2009 at 11:30 am
Thanks Rajan, Very useful links and tips.
Ganesh
September 3rd, 2009 at 12:53 am
kings corner: is first line’s first number, second line’s first number,
last line’s first number is always kings corner ………….all will together cut.
queens corner : first line’s last number, second line’s last number,
last line’s last number is always queenscorner ………….all will together cut
September 22nd, 2009 at 7:54 pm
can u plz suggest any small programme for tambola & tickest generator.
Thanks a lot in advance
Nitin Warde
September 25th, 2009 at 4:34 am
wanna make calling numbers interesting and exciting , plse suggest some good tips
October 4th, 2009 at 11:15 am
make calling numbers interesting and exciting
November 8th, 2009 at 5:08 pm
Dear,
Can You please fwd me different ways of calling Nos in Housie by the house master…
Thanks,
November 10th, 2009 at 8:08 am
Looking for good calling numbers interesting and exciting e.g., “walking stick No.7″ , ” two little ducks 2 and 2 twenty tewo” etc
November 18th, 2009 at 8:17 pm
Regards, I am looking for interesting call outs for tambola game
December 20th, 2009 at 10:31 am
FVRGHUY
December 23rd, 2009 at 2:45 pm
hi, i want to know in tambola ticket, calling no intersting like unlucky no2
December 26th, 2009 at 9:47 am
where is answers to our questions?
December 28th, 2009 at 11:37 am
Hi guys
Here’s the list of all Tambola numbers……
All the best
1 Lone ranger
2 One little duck
3 Happy family
4 Murgi chor
5 Punjab da puttar
6 Bottom heavy
7 One hockey stick
8 One fat major
9 Doctor’s time
10 A big fat hen
11 Two heavenly legs
12 One dozen
13 Bakers dozen
14 Valentine’s Day
15 Yet to be kissed
16 Sweet sixteen
17 Dancing Queen
18 Voting age
19 Last of the teens
20 One score
21 President’s salute
22 Two little ducks
23 You and me
24 Two dozen
25 Quarter
26 Republic Day
27 Gateway to heaven
28 Duck and its mate
29 In your prime
30 Women get flirty at 30
31 Time for fun
32 Mouth Full
33 All the 3s
34 Dil mange more
35 Flirty wife
36 Popular size
37 Mixed luck
38 Oversize
39 Watch your waistline
40 Naughty 40
41 Life’s begun at 41
42 Quit India Movement
43 Pain in the knee
44 All the fours
45 Halfway there
46 Up to tricks
47 Year of Independence
48 Four dozen
49 Rise and shine
50 Half a century
51 Charity begins at 51
52 Pack of cards
53 Pack with a joker
54 Pack with two jokers
55 All the fives
56 Pick up sticks
57 Mutiny Year
58 Time to retire
59 Just retired
60 Five dozen
61 Bakers bun
62 Click the two
63 Click the three
64 Catch the chor
65 Old age pension
66 Chakke pe chakka
67 Made in heaven
68 Saving grace
69 Ulta Pulta
70 Lucky blind
71 Lucky bachelor
72 Lucky couple
73 A crutch and a flea
74 Lucky chor
75 Lucky Five
76 Lucky six
77 Two hockey sticks
78 Heaven’s gate
79 One more time, lucky nine
80 Gandhi’s breakfast
81 Corner shot
82 Last of the two, Fat lady with a duck
83 India wins Cricket World Cup
84 Last of the chors
85 Grandma
86 Last six
87 Grandpa
88 Two fat ladies
89 All but one
90 Top of the house
December 28th, 2009 at 11:38 am
i have taken these numbers from some sources, added some myself….
hope this helps you all conduct some rocking rounds of tambola in the coming days
January 6th, 2010 at 12:06 pm
i have a big question how to play this game
January 19th, 2010 at 12:41 pm
Hi, I am the person to intertain the people in our community, therefore I am looking to buy a Tambola full set. where can i buy that? but not Bingo its only 75 balls but Tambola has 90 full house balls.
Many thanks
January 23rd, 2010 at 6:32 pm
Thank u , Rohan! Have to announce tomorrow……….. U were a big help!
February 3rd, 2010 at 7:17 am
Thanks Rajaram. I have noted few tips to make my next Thambola game interesting.
February 19th, 2010 at 6:17 am
Can you pls send me the pharases that can be used in telling tambola numbers
March 8th, 2010 at 7:37 am
i need pharse in regards with family members r relative can u suggest me with good ideas plz….
March 19th, 2010 at 1:58 pm
thanxx… a lot rohan…its helpfull,i was searching madly n finally got it
March 23rd, 2010 at 7:18 am
hey … ur reviews r of great help .. thanx… but can i know about some more variations , apart from lines, sandwhich, pyramid, kings corner etc….something other than these…thanx
April 22nd, 2010 at 6:27 am
pls suggest in hindi , to make housie numbers calling interesting & funny .
May 3rd, 2010 at 6:05 pm
hey guys this relly helped me alot, i am in a situation that i havent played any tambolas and i jumped in to arrange a big tambola, probably some 200 ppl would be comming. hope it is a good show
May 12th, 2010 at 12:26 pm
how to play this game
June 24th, 2010 at 1:16 pm
I havn’t played it before. tomorrow I am going to participate in a game event in my company. Hope after reading your blog, It will be a better show for me. Thanks.
July 12th, 2010 at 6:31 am
Very Interesting. For a Long time, i was searching the wording of calling numbers, Now I am able to see that. I will make now more interesting while playing the Tambola. Thanks.
July 23rd, 2010 at 11:00 am
thanks a lot man!! ur tambola nos were of gr8 help….
August 13th, 2010 at 10:43 am
From this site you can now Generate and Download Free customizable tambola and houzee tickets.
You can see various rules, how to play game and what are the various winning criterias.
http://tambolatickets.kunals.com