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Have you ever tried to make a house of cards?
Arnav Daga, a 15-year-old from India, is a pro builder. 😎
Using around 143,000 playing cards – and zero tape or glue – he officially created the world’s largest playing card structure!
It took him 41 DAYS to complete, and it measures 12.21 m (40 ft) in length, 3.47 m (11 ft 4 in) in height, and 5.08 m (16 ft 8 in) in width.
Incredible, right? 🤯
What's more, Arnav's structure was not built at random - it features four iconic buildings from his home city of Kolkata: the Writers’ Building, the Shaheed Minar, Salt Lake Stadium, and St. Paul’s Cathedral.
Talk about loving your city!
🔎Can you name one building from the city or country you live in?
Before starting on his big project, Arnav visited all four buildings and studied them closely, like a professional. 🤓
One of the biggest challenges, however, was finding the right place for his own card building.
He needed a tall, airtight space with a flat floor, and he viewed “close to 30” places before he found 'the one'!
So what were the next steps?
Before he could start stacking, Arnav drew a basic outline of each building on the floor.
And then... it was time to get on it! 💪
Arnav's technique involves using “grids” (four horizontal cards stood at right angles) and “vertical cells” (four vertical cards inclined towards each other at right angles).
It might seem like Arnav had everything figured out but, in reality, he had to “improvise a lot” when issues came up, such as when St. Paul’s Cathedral partially fell down.
But he never gave up. 🙏🏼
As he told us: “It was frustrating that so many hours and days of work got wiped out and I had to do it all over again, but for me there was no turning back.”
“At times you have to decide on the spot if an alteration or change of approach is required. Making such a huge project was very new to me.”
Arnav struggled to balance his schoolwork and record attempt throughout the six weeks, but he was determined to make it work: “It was very tough to do both, but I was determined to overcome all difficulties.”
The moment I wore my headphones and started working on the structure I was in a different world. - Arnav
You might be wondering... when did Arnav's obsession with card stacking start?
It started when he was about 8 years old. However, he only began to take it more seriously during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, as he suddenly had lots of free time to work on his skill! 🃏
Because he had limited space in his room, he began by creating smaller structures and, over time, his work grew in size.
“Three years of hard work and practise in making smaller structures improved my skill and gave me the confidence for attempting a world record,” Arnav explained.
“It is definitely overwhelming and feels like I am living my dream which I saw back in 2020.
“For me the journey has just begun.”
Congratulations, Arnav, you built your way to record-breaking victory! 👏