A beautiful mind!

 

 

When you are a chess player who is voted the 'Sports person of the Millennium' in a country besotted with cricket stars, surely you have got to be special. Vishwanathan Anand, the world's premier chess player and current World Champion, is all that and more. TSI caught up with him after his triumphant homecoming from the World Chess Championship and tried to deconstruct the mind of a champion and also catch a glimpse of the 'other' side of being Vishy...

Being the No. 1 in the chess world - How would you describe the feeling?

It’s a really great feeling and I am really happy about it. I thank the Almighty for this great honour.

How do you face victories and losses?

It’s a great feeling to win a tournament. But at the same time, I cannot afford to remain in that mind set and must move ahead to face future competitions. I do face losses, like at the recent Blitz championship in Russia. It’s sad because I should have won, but some mild mistakes meant that I lost it at the last moment.

What pulled you towards the black and white board with 64 squares? How did you pick up the game?

I have learnt it from my mother. Once I imbibed interest I slowly and steadily built it on my own. It became a passion after a point.

Cricket enjoys unparalleled status in India. The general perception remains that other games are handed step-motherly treatment. What’s your take?

I do not know the reasons but nowadays the situation is fast changing. Many young minds are now showing interest in chess. I am sure this would alter the image and status of the game. Once people show interest in a game and start participating in it in good numbers, people will recognise it and it gets easier to get sponsors.

Chess being a mental sport, are there any particular kinds of exercise regimens that you follow before and during tournaments?

Yes, chess is no different from other games. It is more of a mental game, however it does require lot of physical exercises also. Otherwise, one may not sustain his or her energy in the game. Therefore, I go out for regular ‘work-out’ in the gym.

In your view, is there a direct correlation between one’s IQ and the level of success in chess?

I cannot comment on the psychological aspect of it. However, one thing I can confidently say is that regularly playing chess will certainly improve a child’s memory and mental stamina. But at the same time, being completely absorbed into a game will also damage the child’s education. Therefore, one must understand this difference very clearly. Regarding the relationship with one’s IQ, I haven’t studied this issue in detail. You plan to launch a chess academy. How is it coming along?

It is already in place. So far we have trained 1.5 lakh children from nearly 5000 schools across the country from our “Mind Champions Academy”. We plan to increase the number as well as our training sessions to reach out to enthusiasts.

Chess is your primary sport. Any others that you have particular liking for?

I like tennis. At the same time, I go for swimming and cycling whenever I get time. I love watching football.

Russia seems to have an assembly line of Chess champions. Is there any special reason for that?

Today many players come from many different countries. But for quite some time, the world of chess was completely dominated by the Russians. It is because of the dedication they have shown towards this field. They start their training programmes with children at a very tender age. And from as early as the 1920s, they had begun providing infrastructure for the game. That is why they have been reaping the dividends. In spite of many countries competing in chess now, Russians still lead the field. The Chinese are following the Russian way now.

India has seen its own share of growing young chess enthusiasts. And most of them name you as their inspiration. Your thoughts...

I feel happy to see that so many children show interest in chess. But I don’t know whether I have played a role there. I think it is a very encouraging trend. What do you in the ‘chess-free’ hours that you get?

If at all I get free time, I go to gym and nowadays I have developed lot of interest in astronomy. I spend most of my free time reading literature on astronomy.

Any inclination towards watching movies?

Yes, I do watch film, mostly Tamil ones. Recently I watched ‘Sivaji’ and being a great fan of Rajinikanth I really liked it.

A grand welcome awaited you as you returned from your successful World Championship quest. How was the feeling?

It was indeed a great feeling. Especially the warm reception I received in Chennai was very memorable. This is for the second time, I have been given such a warm welcome in my home town. It gives me enormous satisfaction and delight to see all the admiration.

What is life like in Spain?

It is true I spend good number of my days in Spain where I have a lot of friends both Indians and foreigners. I enjoy my leisure time playing with them and refresh my skills with a Danish expert. It is quite enjoyable.

You are a veteran of countless tournaments. Any special moments or matches?

I won a match in a PCA (Professional Chess Association) Interzonal tournament in Groningen against Stanek Stanislav in 17 moves. It was very memorable. People still talk about it. 64 BEWITCHING SQUARES

It was a game which became an obsession so consuming that it wrecked the personal and political lives of two noblemen in Munshi Premchand’s short story set in the Indian kingdom of Awadh which Satyajit Ray brilliantly brought to life on celluloid in his film ‘Shatranj Ke Khiladi’. Chess, or chaturanga as it was known in the ancient times is more than just a mind game. On a metaphorical level chess can capture the power of the human mind and imagination like no other.

Ancient origins of chess remain obscure though there is fair consensus on the claim that it emerged from Persia. Around the 9th century it began its spread towards Europe and by the time the 15th century closed, chess as we know it today had pretty much emerged. In the five subsequent centuries, chess as a game became more and more organised culminating in the establishment of FIDE (Federation Internationale des Echecs) in 1924 which helped it emerge as a professional sport. Initially the Soviet Union, for whom chess and politics would always be intricately strung, refused to join but after the incumbent world champion Alexander Alekhine died in 1946 and with FIDE organising the World Championship to find the replacement, it relented. The new champion was Mikhail Botvinnik who heralded an assembly line of Soviet champions in the sport including the most recognisable ones - Anatoly Karpov and Garry Kasparov.

The Indian challenge in the world of chess has perennially been personified by one man-the unassuming and affable Vishwanathan Anand. Anand, the current World Champion and on top of the FIDE’s Elo ratings (a rating system for chess players), emerged meteorically winning the World Junior Chess championship in 1987 and becoming grandmaster at age 18. Today, inspired by his achievements many chess prodigies have emerged from India including Koneru Hampi who is currently number two in the Women’s Elo Ratings. K Visweswaran, a chess trainer who was India’s coach in the recently concluded World Youth Chess Championship believes ‘Anand’s exploits have inspired children to take up chess in India, even at very young ages and with good trainers around and rigorous tournaments, it has meant a boom in the emergence of chess talent on the world stage from India.’

Given its nature, chess requires consummate skill to master and is often seen as the sport of the ‘geeks’. Parimarajan Negi, the World’s Youngest Grandmaster at age 14 told TSI about the secret behind his success ‘I have coaches from Russia with whom I have intensive training sessions.’ In India, and in many other places in the world it remains a special interest sport, the proverbial poorer cousin of other glamourous and lucrative sports. Reefat Bin Sattar, the International Grandmaster from Bangladesh laments to TSI that in his country ‘With cricket catching the fancy it’s very difficult to get people interested in chess, since there is no patronage.’ But for those who have tasted the addiction of this heady mindsport, there cannot be anything better. Just ask Mirza Sajjad Ali and Mir Roshan Ali in ‘Shatranj Ke Khiladi’!