Sixty-odd pool clubs are already scattered across Mumbai, and new ones are opening up almost every week. The fever has risen so much that the Annual International Leisure India Show, which exhibits everything to do with the game and leisure industry, held a mini-tournament recently.

``It's great for the game,'' says Devendra Joshi, current snooker national champion. ``But the craze isn't new. Delhi and Pune have had this trend going strong for a long time now. What's happening now is that people who begin to excel at pool, which is very simple, are switching on to bigger tables. The trend is moving towards throwing in a snooker table as well,'' he says.

The first snooker table has been placed at Hustlers, a pool club that opened last week at Lokhandwala Complex, Andheri. Theclub offers a game of snooker at the rate of Rs 100 for 30 minutes. ``There are pool tables everywhere, so we thought, why not have a snooker table as well? The response has been phenomenal,'' says Masood Shaikh, a partner at Hustlers. The charges for pool are Rs 50 a frame, with a tentative time limit of 15 minutes.

The proliferation of little pool joints from Chembur to Ghatkopar and Kandivli to Fort has been very quick. ``When people come from far-flung areas to play, they'll surely love playing closer home,'' says Prasanna Shetty, a partner at Balls, a chain of pool clubs with outlets at Mulund and Ghatkopar. ``Our clubs there are doing as well as those in Bandra and Juhu,'' he says.

Yusuf Shah of Cool Pool, Fort, isn't complaining either. Taking up space for a pool club in a bustling office area has done him a lot of good. ``I have the college crowd coming here during the day, and the office crowd in the evenings,'' he says. ``Apart from being the in thing now, it's also cheap recreation,'' notesJoshi. ``Earlier, one couldn't imagine joining a club and paying a big amount to play.'' Most of the pool clubs don't serve liquor, so parents also don't mind if their children spend time playing a good game.

The fact that people of all ages and categories flock to these places has perhaps led to the boom in investment.

On an average, a pool club needs at least Rs 15 to 20 lakh in terms of initial investment. Tables could cost anything from Rs 35,000 and more, depending upon the quality. And the ambience of the place also has to be worked upon -- music, snacks and decor.

People from various industries -- pharmaceuticals, building, graphic designing, engineering -- have started pool clubs, because more than experience, it's the investment amount that matters. Professional markers can be hired to teach patrons. The entrepreneur's job lies in sitting back and waiting for business to start booming. But everyone feels a gestation period of about a year is essential.

There are also some big names cashingin on the trend. Hustlers, for instance, has tied up with fast food giant Croissant's Etc.

They inaugurated their new joint at Breach Candy on Wednesday last. ``We'll have four tables, which will be manned by us, and the restaurant is theirs,'' says Shaikh.

It's only a matter of time before bigger players in the consumer market too enter, feels Joshi. ``Where there are crowds and games of any kind, how can soft drink companies and other such companies stay away?" he asks.