Playing cards in capital: a good pastime

Tense and arranging cards carefully, he is eagerly awaiting the forth king of cards. His opponent is doing the best to deny the desired card to him. Here he picks the desired card- Hurrah! It is the card that Chacha Naeem is looking for. He leaps in the air with joy. The party will have to serve tea to the victorious team.
Oblivious to the chilly cold, Chacha Naeem, as he is fondly called, now in his seventies, is relaxed and shares his experience of card playing. Hailing from Jhelum that bespectacled old man started playing cards when the capital was first shifted here from Karachi.
Thin, weak but high in spirits, Chacha Naeem carries a sound experience of over a half of his life time in card-playing. He proudly tells that the tens of enthusiasts of cards playing daily gather at the Sitara Market are his pupils. One can see scores of them setting in groups playing cards from evening to late night.
They are of all ages and professions. Islamabad has been accused of having no culture, no peculiar characteristic of its own but such sort of activities give a local and vibrant touch to the environment of the city, said a man sitting next to Chacha Naeem.
As they belong to various parts of the county, they gather and play with each other so it gives a true colour of being representative of all provinces exhibiting a harmony not available everywhere.
Outdoor games are also played here but they end with sunset while these seasoned people continue their joy till late in the night. Rehan Iqbal (65) said, "He used to spend most of his time visiting barber shops to get rid of loneliness after retirement but after shifting from Rawalpindi to the Capital I always spend time by playing cards."
He said that he impatiently waits for other colleagues to return from offices and start the game of cards. Rehmat Khan said playing cards is a good pastime that takes away tensions of everyday life. He said that he is associated with this game for the last ten years and in case of rainy weather, he and his partners are deprived of the joy of their pastime owing to non availability of proper place and spectators.