The Tamesis
There was a time when “crack” was something I needed to do on my back, “bang” was the untimely noise the radiator made in my New York apartment, and “dot” was a unit of measurement for liquid blush. But ever since I became obsessed with mahjong, this sentence has been lingering in my mind.
The game of Mahjong originated in China’s Qing Dynasty and became popular around the world with waves of East Asian immigrants in the early 20th century, quickly attracting a new generation of players. (In 1937, a group of Jewish women also founded the National Mahjong League, creating what is today American Mahjong.) As “granny hobbies” become more popular amid digital hype (think: needlepoint, bread baking, and vision boards), brands are adapting accordingly. Now, playing a good old-fashioned board game has never been more fashionable.
My college friends and I found it nearly impossible to see each other without a birthday, engagement, or housewarming celebration, so we decided to sign up for mahjong lessons. I arrived at the host’s apartment expecting a white-haired woman in a rocking chair to teach us how to play tiles on a plastic folding table, but instead we were greeted by a 25-year-old girl with a slicked-back bun and a cheetah-print denim jacket, standing next to two decadent bright-pink game boards. Meet company founder Hasie Sherman and her twin sister Clara So Bam Finn, Bringing Mahjong to the masses.
In fact, their playful approach to traditional gaming has amassed an exciting new following. “Young people are trying to break away from technology,” Clara told us Fashionemphasizes the motivation of finding community in the game rather than going home and scrolling through doom for a few hours. “Sitting at a mahjong table with three other people is an opportunity to not look at your phone – you have to focus on the cards the whole time.”
The sisters point to New York as the city most interested in the sport, a city obsessed with after-get off work rituals and creative pursuits, and one with a large East and Southeast Asian diaspora community. Green Tile Social Club is a major driver of a new wave of interest in Mahjong among younger generations: Founded in 2022 by four Asian-American friends, the club quickly became one of the largest groups in New York City, hosting weekly Cantonese-style Mahjong games and legendary Lunar New Year parties.
