DURBAN - “KHANUCK!” can be heard from the corner of the outdoor cafeteria at the Durban University of Technology’s Steve Biko Campus, where a group of youngsters engage in the card game thunee.
“It’s a game that brings us together because we all teach each other,” said Dillen Gounden, 22, who tries to squeeze in a few hands of thunee with friends between lectures.
Thunee is a game of “cunning” that originated in Durban among Indian indentured-labourers. The culture of the game has strengthened as it passed through generations of families and friends playing the game.
Among the boys who showed-off their thunee-skills was Ashil Panday, 18. He learnt the game through friends on campus, while Jared Poonsamy, 18, was schooled in thunee by his older brother.
Gounden added: “It’s something that is truly South African heritage because it was born right here.”