How mobile games became a medium of protest against the power crisis in Kerala

Screenshots of Pookki.online | Photo credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

How quickly can you light candles after a power outage in your home? Or how exactly can you swat mosquitoes in the flickering light of a candle?

As the erratic curtailment of power continues in the wake of the ongoing power crisis in Kerala, innovative protest methods led by youth organizations of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) such as games, memes and artificial intelligence videos have sparked conversation.

Two web games in particular, namely Indira Cut and Pookki.online, which were released in recent weeks, are gaining traction online. Indira Cut, developed by Palakkad-based Favas Kinan for the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), Palakkad District Committee, and Pookki.online, jointly created by New Zealand-based Sikhin S. and Mr. Kinan, take shots at the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) government and Kerala Chief Minister VD Satheesan.

While Indira Cut examines the Indira Guarantee, the five welfare promises made by the UDF during the 2026 Kerala state assembly election campaign, the title Pookki.online refers to the internet nickname given to Mr. Satheesan.

Screenshots for Indira Cut | Photo credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT

Idea

“The idea arose from the recent discussions and frustrations related to power cuts in Kerala. Since games are an easy and engaging way to communicate a point, I thought of turning the situation into a simple interactive experience rather than creating another regular poster or social media post,” said Mr. Sikhin, District Committee Member, DYFI Ernakulam.

In Indira Cut, the player’s goal is to kill as many mosquitoes as possible before the insects fall into the flickering candle. Players should leave the candles lit to continue the game and earn more points. Released on September 13, 2026, the game has garnered more than 9,52,000 unique players, according to Mr. Kinan, who is also the convener of the DYFI Professional Subcommittee Palakkad.

Find a candle and a match

In Pookki.online, the candle and match are hidden separately behind two tiles in a 56-tile grid. The goal of the game is to find them both within 18 seconds of the power going out. High scores are awarded based on how quickly players find items. The game, which was released on September 14, has received more than 20,000 page views.

Mr Sikhin said: “The idea was to use humor and interaction to reflect something that people are currently experiencing in their daily lives. When people play the game, they can immediately relate the concept to a real-life situation, making the message more memorable.”

Published – 24 Sep 2026 07:00 IST