- Unboxed Game Fest 2026 marks a decade of board gaming becoming a cultural movement in Ahmedabad
- What began in living rooms now fuels creativity, learning and careers
- A screen-free revolution where play sparks thought, dialogue and design
- India’s young gamers, designers and dreamers gather at Gujarat’s biggest board game festival
- January 3–4, 2026 | Jdhpur Hall, Ahmedabad
NE EDUTAINMENT BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, DEC 23
A decade ago, board gaming in Ahmedabad was a quiet rebellion—played in living rooms, café corners, and late-night gatherings where the games ended but conversations never did. It was intimate, analogue, and deeply human. What sustained it were a few passionate believers who kept the tables open and the doors wider, welcoming strangers into a shared space of play.
Among these pioneers was Shradha Jain, founder of Studio Clock Works, whose regular game nights became gateways for many young people discovering board games not just as entertainment, but as a way to think, collaborate, and connect. Slowly, something powerful took root—a community-driven culture of screen-free play, where people from different walks of life met as equals across a table.
Fast forward from 2015 to today, and that quiet movement has transformed into a thriving cultural ecosystem, with national conventions, original Indian-designed games, academic interest, and youth-led communities across the country. Board gaming in India has stepped out of the margins—and into the mainstream.
At the heart of this journey stands Unboxed Game Fest 2026 (UGF 2026), returning on January 3 and 4, celebrating 10 years of board gaming in Ahmedabad and the festival’s own evolution into its second edition. Hosted by Unboxed Club, a not-for-profit and fully volunteer-driven collective, the festival represents everything this movement has grown to embody—play, learning, commerce, creativity, and connection.
After a successful debut that welcomed over 700 participants from 15 cities, UGF 2026 returns as Gujarat’s largest board game festival, inviting students, families, educators, designers, publishers, retailers, first-time players, and seasoned gamers to gather around tables—away from screens, and closer to each other.
A Movement Bigger Than One City
Unboxed mirrors a larger national awakening. Across India, festivals like TTOX in Bengaluru and Chennai signal a shift where tabletop games are no longer niche hobbies, but powerful cultural tools shaping how people learn, think, and interact.
Indian board game designers are now gaining international recognition, games are entering classrooms and academic discourse, and a new generation of children is rediscovering play as a collaborative, social experience. Unboxed Game Fest 2026 stands at this intersection—honouring how far the ecosystem has come, and imagining where it can go next.
Play as Learning, Culture and Career
UGF 2026 moves beyond casual fun to explore how games shape thinking, values, and livelihoods. Through workshops and masterclasses, young minds are introduced to play as a serious tool for inquiry and creation.
Design educator Prof. Jay Thakkar (CEPT University) brings a cultural perspective, examining games as spaces for dialogue and reflection.
“Play is not entertainment — it’s a method of inquiry,” he notes, highlighting how games allow people to engage with complex ideas through participation rather than debate.
Game designer Shradha Jain focuses on accessibility and empowerment, introducing participants to open-source digital tools that help young creators move from imagination to implementation. Drawing from her international experience, she shows how structured toolkits can transform ideas into playable prototypes.
Other masterclasses explore designing your first board game, teaching math through play, building cognitive and life skills, and understanding how designers can build sustainable careers—opening new horizons for students who see creativity as a calling.
Strengthening India’s Board Game Ecosystem
Adding a national lens are Phalgun Polepalli and Shwetha Badarinath, founders of Mozaic Games and organisers of the TTOX board game convention.
“Festivals like Unboxed and TTOX bring the whole community—from designers and publishers to players—in one place and help the ecosystem mature together,” says Polepalli.
Badarinath underlines the unique power of community-led festivals:
“Online platforms show numbers. Retail shows what sells. Festivals show how games are actually played. Watching people learn, struggle, enjoy and return to a game gives insights you simply can’t get elsewhere. For young and aspiring designers, such spaces can be transformative.”
“For many creators, this is the first time they feel their ideas matter,” adds Polepalli. “One weekend at a festival like this can completely change how someone sees their future.”
Celebrating a Decade — and Igniting What Comes Next
Reflecting on the spirit behind the festival, Kruti Shah, Founder of The Hive and Co-Founder of Unboxed, says, “Board games have quietly shaped how people in Ahmedabad connect across ages, professions, and backgrounds. Over the years, we’ve seen children teaching adults, strangers becoming friends, and families discovering new ways to spend time together. Unboxed is a celebration of that journey—of play re-entering public life, and of the people who have made a decade of gaming possible.”
What to Expect at Unboxed Game Fest 2026
UGF 2026 transforms a decade-long movement into a two-day celebration of curiosity and creativity, featuring:
- 150+ board games, including Indian-designed titles and global favourites
- Dedicated facilitators to welcome beginners
- A Family Play Arena with all-day access
- Tournaments for all age groups, with prizes worth ₹60,000
- Immersive experiences such as Dungeons & Dragons, a Squid Games–style treasure hunt, and Blood on the Clocktower
- Games Ravivari, a marketplace for pre-loved board games
- Workshops and masterclasses exploring play as learning, culture and career
Event Details
Dates: January 3 & 4, 2026
Time: 10:00 am – 8:00 pm
Venue: Jodhpur Hall, Ahmedabad
Tickets: One-day and two-day passes available on allevents.in
Event Coordinator Kruti Shah can be contacted over +91-98983-38683
