The Great Gamblers

Diwali and teen patti? Wealthy Indians have raised the stakes far higher. ET on
Sunday visits casinos, homes and clubs to collate the story of big bets, big thrills
and big change in India`s gambling culture
:: TV Mahalingam


Sometime in September, Ghanshyam Sharda packed his bags and came to Goa.
Unlike most others tourists, who Ilock to Goa to soak in the atmosphere and cheap
beer, the 53-year-old marble trader Irom Delhi spent most oI his time in Goa`s largest
casino, Casino Royale. Four years ago, Sharda made a trip to Kathmandu where he
wagered chhota mota` (petty) bets.
In Goa, Sharda was more adventurous. He signed up Ior the World Gaming Festival.
AIter three days oI playing American Roulette largely a game oI chance Sharda
won the Iinals and pocketed 26 lakh (aIter taxes). What does he plan to do with the
winnings? 'I will make a donation to a temple, says Sharda. 'Perhaps, invest in some
property too, he adds.
Six hundred kilometres away, Sameer Chokhani (name changed) is gearing up Ior the
annual Diwali eve teen patti party` at the house oI his boss, a leading Mumbai-based
banker. 'Even though nobody talks business, it`s a great networking opportunity,
says Chokhani. 'Typically, we have three-Iive tables. The minimum buy-in is 2-3
lakh. It`s strictly by-invitation, with single malt and vegetarian Iood, says Chokhani.
Diwali is a couple oI days away and Indians across the country (especially in north
and western India) will pull out their decks oI playing cards to indulge in their annual
game oI teen patti. In most cases, the bets will be small a Iew hundred or a couple
oI thousand rupees will change hands in each game. But, make no mistake, over the
years, a new breed oI Indians are emerging who don`t need the Diwali excuse to
wager big money.
One could argue that millions oI Indians have been gambling every day by buying
lottery tickets or by playing in the illegal satta dens oI Mumbai. Or that hundreds oI
millions oI rupees change hands every time the boys in blue hit the cricket Iield. A
widely quoted Iigure is that the gambling industry in India is worth about $60 billion
most oI which is illegal.
However, what`s diIIerent about this new set oI gamers as the casinos call them
is that they don`t mind spending a Iew lakhs Ior a night oI thrills and they are
willing to travel anywhere to do it.
Beers and Bets
Casinos are the Ilavour oI the season in Goa. The luggage conveyer belt at the tiny
airport is painted to resemble a roulette wheel. HalI-a-dozen hoardings outside the
airport remind you oI the riches that could be won at the spin oI a wheel. At night, the
picturesque walkway near the Mandovi River in Panjim is lit by neon signboards oI
oIIshore casinos. India`s sunset strip is all set to do business.
And what good business it has been! 'The casinos in Goa should do business oI
300 crore this year, says Xavier Vaz, director, Casino Carnival, an oIIshore casino.
That may sound minuscule compared to Macau which clocked revenues oI $3 billion
in August alone but given that the casinos oI Goa were clocking just 50 crore in 2007,
they have come a long way indeed.
How did this happen? For one, there are more oIIshore casinos Iloating in the
Mandovi riverIront oI Goa than a Iew years ago. Today, there are 16 onshore and Iour
oIIshore casinos operational in Goa. They did not target the scrounging Caucasian
backpacker but went aIter the aIIluent Indian who has gambled beIore.
'Indians have always indulged in gaming abroad. Visiting Las Vegas, Macau and
Singapore in large numbers, the urban Indian was always aware oI this, says Hardik
Dhebar, group chieI Iinancial oIIicer, Delta Corp, which operates two oIIshore casinos
Casino Royale and Casino Prime. High-proIile investors like Rakesh Jhunjhunwala
have invested in Delta, a listed company. It is estimated nearly 70 oI visitors to
casinos in Kathmandu are Indians.
Family Game
'We are looking at the well-heeled, well-travelled high net worth Indians to give us
most oI our business, says Vaz. 'We are looking at creating Iamily centres oI
entertainment and not just gambling setups, he explains. As a result, Casino Carnival
has a creche in which children are taken care oI by trained nannies as parents gamble
a Iloor below.
In Iact, casino executives ET on Sundayspoke to were uncomIortable using the
word gambling. 'Gaming, not gambling, chided one executive. Gambling evokes
images oI mythological characters playing dice and losing their kingdoms and wives.
Gaming is a lot more sterile.
Most casinos say that they have started developing their own loyal clientele.
According to an executive, each oIIshore casino Ilies in, wines and dines anywhere
between '250 and 400 high net worth, regular gamers every month. And why not?
Stories oI VIP clients (who get their private rooms on boats) blowing up 50-70 lakh or
even more in a night are not unheard oI.
Not Easy Winnings
With such money Ilowing in, what`s stopping Goa Irom becoming another Macau?
For starters, getting regulatory approvals is a pain. The Essel group has been trying to
get its oIIshore casino going Ior the past three years but approvals have taken time.
Likewise, Pan India Network that operates the online lottery, Playwin won a
provisional licence last year to start online sports betting operations in Sikkim.
Anybody with an active bank account in Sikkim can bet on the outcome oI a cricket
match online. Playwin is still to hear Irom the government.
Moreover, starting an oIIshore casino is costly and keeping it running, even more
expensive. 'A minimum upIront investment oI 100-110 crore is needed to get
operations going, says a casino owner. Once a casino is up and running, the costs are
similar to running an airline. Even though the boat is anchored, the engines have to
keep running to power the generators; Ieeder boats have to pick and drop clients, and
a proIessional naval crew has to man the boat.
And then, there is the social angle. 'There are no votes Ior allowing gambling,
says an expatriate who runs an oIIshore casino in Goa. On the other hand, gambling is
perceived as a social menace, an allegation not without some substance. Countries in
Europe have extensive programmes to tackle gambling addiction. Indian casino
owners welcome regulations and supervision oI the industry but are aIraid that the
government is throwing the baby out with the bathwater by bringing in what they term
as 'irrational legislation like imposing an entry Iee oI 2,000 on all oIIshore
casinos.
'They want to keep the locals out oI the oIIshore casinos, explains an executive.
'The problem is that the locals anyway visit the landbased casinos. The new entry tax
dissuaded Iirsttime gamers and tourists Irom going oIIshore.
Casino executives cite that gaming is a big employer and a booster Ior tourism.
'How many times would you go back to see the Taj? asks John Snowball, who
oversees gaming operations at the onshore casino at the Crown hotel. 'But iI you like
a casino, chances are you would go back again, he adds.
The House Parties
In November 2007, industrialists Manoj Sethi, Sunil Chopra and Lalit Modi got
together to host a card party. The party had more than 25 card tables, belly dancers
and singer Leslie Lewis set the mood music. Four years later, Delhi`s chatterati still
talk about the party Iondly.
Things have changed now. Party regulars say that last year`s themed parties have
given way to more hush-hush private aIIairs.
Case in point: event and wedding planner Meher Sarid who was behind organising
most big-ticket Diwali parties in 2010 has not managed even a single event. 'There is
some wariness to garish display oI wealth, this year. People are a bit scared to throw
the big 200-plus people events they were doing last year, she says.
Society watcher Devi Cherian conIirms that the parties haven`t stopped but they
have toned down courtesy the Iear oI being caught. 'That doesn`t mean they are not
gambling, just that they are not talking about it, says Cherian.
Estimates put the starting big stakes at 1 lakh to bets that go up to 25 lakh. Then
there are the no-limit tables, a norm at all parties big or small. II the cash isn`t a
possibility, you could bet your house, your car or even your Jimmy Choos or Birkins.
Inclusive Gambling
Even women are game to bet big. Traditionally, while women would be sitting on the
sides there are talks oI them sitting in on the big games where the winnings (and
losing) are usually more than 1 crore.
People are ready to sit Ior seven hours straight through a card game, says socialite
Thenny Mejia, who herselI desists Irom any Iorm oI gambling ceremonial or
otherwise. It`s women who are more likely to bet possessions like jewellery and cars
while men play purely with cash. But Cherian notes that the wads oI notes you saw
earlier exchanging hands at such parties is not the case anymore. 'People talk in code
words and the level oI hush-hush is such that even the table next to you will not know
oI the stakes the other table is playing, she says.
While Delhi has always been the hub oI Diwali card parties and Iuelled more
'interesting card stories like the one about a guy staking his Iarmhouse and losing.
'Delhi`s gambling culture is also Iuelled by a culture oI showing oII and
oneupmanship where the Kapoors have to outdo the Sahnis or the Guptas, Mumbai-
based image consultant Chaya Momaya says.
In a couple oI days, most Indians will get on the streets to enjoy their annual quota
oI Iireworks and crackers. The real action, though, will happen inside the drawing
rooms and the casino tables where aIIluent Indians will assemble to chance their luck.
dditional reporting by Nupur marnath
Quick Guide To Lotteries
Sale oI lotteries is allowed in India, unlike gambling and betting. The Centre makes
the rules; states oversee sales or delegate private parties. States can ban lotteries oI
others. But the Supreme Court has ruled that the ban stands only iI a state too doesn`t
sell. Seven states still do, perhaps because the labyrinth oI laws makes the subject
open to interpretations. In 2005, Kerala banned online lotteries by bracketing it with
gambling. The Centre legalised it with new rules last year. Still, the share oI legal
lotteries has Iallen, says Amit Goenka, CEO, Pan India Network, which operates
online lottery Playwin. Pan`s revenues that had peaked to 36,000 crore in 2009 Iell to
600 crore in 2010. OIIicials say rules remain only on paper. So sale oI lotteries is
typically Iraught with Iraud. Earnings are to end up in the treasury. Only a Iraction
does, they say. Taxes are also mostly unpaid. Dealers are also said to run Ponzi
schemes by paying peanuts to a Iew lucky` ones and keeping the lion`s share to
themselves. - Binoy Prabhakar & TV Mahalingam
Confessions of a Habitual Gambler
Gambling peaks between Dussehra and Diwali, especially Ior teen patti, or Ilash. OI
course, compulsive gamblers like me gamble through the year. I also play poker, a
magnet Ior young salaried proIessionals like me. A game oI poker, iI you play
intelligently, ends up being cheaper than stepping out Ior a movie. The thrill
associated with gambling.well, it cannot be described. Gambling is more oI a
mindgame than that oI luck. Reading the Iace and gauging the body language oI an
opponent make a big diIIerence to Iortunes. I remember putting 2,000 in a casino in
Sikkim and making a proIit oI 3,000 last year. In Delhi, I visit places in the west and
south. There are Iew women around. As a rule, booze is served and music is played.
The atmosphere? It is always tense understandably so. Gaining access is usually
through word oI mouth. A minimum buy-in is usually 10,000, though there is a huge
discount Ior the Iamiliar Iaces. Like me. The experience is total Iun. I usually play
with Iriends or their associates. You don`t mind losing to your Iriends, right? The
most I made in one night is 4,000 while my biggest loss to date 7,000. (s told to
Binoy Prabhakar)