By: Dila Datt Pant(Dilip)
February 28, 2007
There is nothing to surprise to say that we have friends of both rich and poor and good and bad categories. Last Friday, I got a chance to go to Casino Tara with one of my Spanish friends who falls in the first of the first category mentioned above and also likes to be called Saroj, a typical Nepali name. Frankly speaking it was my first to such places where people play with money, see shows, eat the delicacies or lounge in royal suites. Prior to this I had a thought that gambling is a terrible vice and entering a casino would be an ultimate sin. But entering it, I soon realised that my beliefs were not quite just. I found it a life time experience. I was forced to change my obsession about casino. I knew it was just another form of recreation-a recreation to cherish for long at that.
The story of my experience starts with Saroj’s seating to a fairly crowded table where some human lollipops were assigned, may be to mitigate the losing customers' pain in big deals at bets. With some hesitation I managed to sit next to him .For a few minutes, Saroj led with a good fortune but the things did not remain the same .I could at least understand that he was on a gradual loss ,though I did not know other tit bits of the game. Neither did I find it interesting to watch nor could I stay still and unstressed on his loss. So I chose for going around other tables and asked for his consent. He agreed and asked me if I was interested to join the roulette over the next deck. I simply said "no". But when I saw the roulette operation and realised that my little mind could understand at least the maths of winning and losing, a sensation tickled me badly and I could not help taking out the single note of RS.500 well-tucked in the innermost part of my wallet. The emergency fund that I always let it unspent despite the haunting problems and the dire needs in some point of time. But this time, I didn't bother much to think over its utility side. Excitement won over the conscience and I asked the attendant to change it for the credits as required in the roulette. My whole capital could buy so called 30 credits for the roulette rule. The excitement soared. I forgot who I really was. With the so much smooth responses received from the attendants, I thought I was also an equally valid customer and a gambler of the rank of those present there. Amidst these all the stormy calculations and with the little knowledge, I decided to imitate the nearby Indian gambler. With no delay I chose 3 numbers to lay my bet. My numbers were 0,7,19 and I pressed x10(multiply ten times) button for each. Within a few seconds of rotation, the roulette ball fell in the no.15. I din't even get much time to pray for God or to reinforce my own wishes of winning. In the seconds of time there emerged a warning on my board reading -your credits have finished!! Not only the credits but I thought I myself was finished. I could not even surprise much on what had happened let alone entertain! I knew that I had pressed 10 times for 3 numbers meaning that it was equal to 30 credits-my whole bank! I was drowned. I had nothing to do then than to just unwillingly drag myself to my losing friend on the other corner. After this and that experience of about 3 hours we left for home disappointed. On the way home, Saroj asked me if I played the roulette. I lied him and said I didn't. But my heart was secretly telling that within 30 seconds I had lost 30 credits (300IC) which would have bought me some 30 kilos of rice for at least 30 days! Oh casino! No cash-in-'no'!
