Call With Playto

06 Jan, 2025

Recently, I e-met Reddy aka Playto who's a passionate proponent of play for adults.

His philosophy is simple: Get the fuck out and play!

However, it does have a few nuances, and to understand them deeply, I hopped on a GMeet with him.

From the incident that led to his "Play" philosophy to applying it to all walks of life, we discussed a ton of things.

In fact, our conversation itself was like a play. I had so much fun talking to this amazing person.

Here are a few things from our conversation that I'd like to share with you:

Story of Play

When I first came across Reddy's "Play" philosophy, I was super curious to know the story behind it. So, I asked about it right away when we jumped on the call. And Reddy, without any hesitation, shared his story with me.

Reddy lost his dear uncle during COVID. And while he was mourning his uncle's passing, he bumped into two cats playing.

Those two cats played the next day, the following day, and continued playing for a few days.

However, one day, one of the cats passed away. The other cat was sad but after a day or two, it started playing again.

This incident made Reddy realize that "Play" is a default state for all animals. And it's the same for humans too. That's why kids play. But as we grow up, we tend to let go of play.

Play is important even for adults. It helps us stay curious, experiment, explore, learn, and live life to the fullest.

So, after this incident, Reddy decided to play, and he's been playing since then.

But WTF Is Play?

Reddy has put it in simple words: Play is having some fun in everything you do in life.

For example, let's say you're in slow-moving traffic. To play, imagine you're in a video game, trying to navigate a maze so you can get to the next level.

What does this do? It might not make you move fast but at least, you'll be less annoyed about the traffic and have some fun.

Sounds childish but that's the whole point: Play like a child!

What Is Not Play?

Sleeping! Yes, that's what Reddy said. 😂

Kids, while they're awake, play! They don't play only when they're asleep.

So, as long as you're awake, you can play! You can run, jump, dance, sing, gamify your surroundings, and play!

Different Kinds of Play

"But I've got work to dooooo!!", that's what I said (or maybe complained) when Reddy told to play.

Then, Reddy explained that there are different kinds of play: Play for survival, play by oneself, and play with others.

When you work, you play for survival. When you sing, dance, and jump, you play by yourself. And when you hang out with your friends, you play with others (kinda multi-player game).

So, there's play involved in everything, in different forms.

Does Winning Matter?

Me: Kids often play for joy. They don't care about winning. Should adults do the same—not give a fuck about winning and just play?

Reddy: Winning does matter. For a few things in life. You need to find out what those things are and play to win. For everything else? Play for joy!

Making Parents Play

My mom, when she was in her 20s and 30s, used to write beautiful poetry and read Telugu novels. But lately, she's addicted to YouTube.

So, to help her get back to those hobbies, I gifted her a Telugu novel and a journal to write poems again.

Guess what? Neither of those gifts worked! She's still addicted to YouTube. 🥲

While listening to Reddy's "Play" philosophy, I wondered if I could make my mom play. So, I asked him how I could do that.

Reddy, after listening to my failed attempt of helping my mom to get back to her hobbies, said "Don't try to parent your parents the way they parented you. Instead of just gifting a journal to write poetry, how about you write a few lines of poetry in Telugu and ask her to review it? That way you both can play."

I loved that idea! It's true that I can't expect my 46-year-old mom to do things she did in her 20s and 30s just like that. I need to play with her to make her play again!

These were just a few highlights from our rich conversation. It was truly amazing! I really admire people like Reddy who practice what they preach.

I Played Right After Call

Every time, after a GMeet or watching a movie or finishing a book, I think of jotting down a few pointers so I can write a post on my blog. But I often end up not doing it.

However, after the call with Reddy, I did it! All thanks to his Play philosophy.

I gamified the activity of jotting down the pointers. I was like "Time for a game! Let's see how many things I can remember from our conversation. And for every pointer, I'll get 2 points."

Guess what? It worked! I jotted down the pointers successfully and here's the blog post! Plus, it was all fun! :)

If you're curious about the "Play" philosophy, I recommend following Reddy on X. He regularly tweets about his philosophy and how he practices it.