Toying with ideas

How does one decide that which game is meant for which age group? Says Kumar: "There are certain milestones in the growth of a child which have been identified by psychologists. According to this, we grade our games." On each educational game, Kumar mentions the objectives which it is intended to fulfil.

Durriya Gabajiwala of Peacock Overseas, a Mumbai-based company which is planning to expand its network to Delhi, says that her company specialises in block building toys and creative designers which encourage children to think. "Our toys do not restrict children to strict patterns. Children are free to experiment and come up with new designs. Gabajiwala observes that people in the Capital are not very interested in educational toys. "It is surprising that parents think that their 12 year olds will not be able to solve puzzles designed for 8 year olds and encourage them to buy ready made toys. Thankfully the trend is different in Mumbai."

With a turnover of Rs 1 crore, Raj Kumar of Creative Toys says that a major problem they face in this line is satisfying the dealer demand for something new. "This is quite unlike the other countries. For instance, in America, I came across four companies which were manufacturing one type of games. This helps them in specialising."