‘I WISH THERE WAS SOME WAY TO SHOW PEOPLE THAT CHESS INVOLVES AS MUCH HARD WORK AS ANY OTHER SPORT’
It’s been more than a year since Indian grandmaster Harika Dronavalli rose to World No 5 ranking in October last year. But things haven’t exactly gone her way since winning the World Championship bronze medal in March this year and her ranking dipped to
11. However, the chess champ is unperturbed by it. “My goal is to become World No 1 and I’m doing everything needed to get there,” says the 26-year-old as she talks about her game plan — for chess and life.
What was it like to be a chess prodigy?
I remember when I returned home, my entire school came to receive me with garlands and flowers. And they would do that whenever I came back after winning a national or international level competition. At that time, I didn’t understand anything. The only thing I knew was that if I play well, I was treated like a queen. I just wanted to achieve the goals set by my parents. And I knew that our collective goal was to become ‘World Champion’. Soon, I began travelling abroad to compete in international championships. In 2000, I won a silver medal at the U-10 Girls World Youth Chess Championship, Spain — my first international championship. During a tournament, when a Chinese girl and I tied on the points table, everyone told me I was assured of silver medal. But I was scared that someone will take my silver, so I went and agreed for a draw without even informing my parents. It was a foolish thing to do, but at that age that silver became so important for me that I didn’t realise that I must fight for gold. Gradually, I began winning a lot of medals in junior circuits across the world.
In your last interview with us you told us that you travel with your pressure cooker. Has that changed?
(Smiles) I’ve gotten a lot lazier now and have learnt to get by with quick-to-make salads. But there is nothing like dal rice for comfort food when you are away from home for long periods of time. Initially, I used to find it difficult to find groceries in countries like China and Russia where people don’t know any other language. But thankfully, I’ve gotten better at the universal language of signs. Thanks to smart phones, you can also refer to an online dictionary.
You have won a clutch of the most prestigious chess championships in the world. Yet, your feats do not get the same recognition like badminton, wrestling or athletics. That must rankle?
Well, chess isn’t a viewer-friendly game. Viewers have little to connect with two players sitting hunched across a chess board. I wish there was some way to show people that chess takes a lot of effort. We might not sweat when playing a game, but it takes a lot of physical and mental ability to decide the best move.
In all your travels, there must’ve been some interesting men, who might have caught your attention?
(Smiles) Coming from a conventional family, it’s normal to have an arranged marriage. The only thought I had about guys is that at some point in life, my dad will find a suitable boy and I will get married to him.
Is there anything else that you’ve set yourself to do, besides achieving chess goals?
Well, I’ve travelled to close to 50 countries till date and I would love to see a few more countries.
It’s been more than a year since Indian grandmaster Harika Dronavalli rose to World No 5 ranking in October last year. But things haven’t exactly gone her way since winning the World Championship bronze medal in March this year and her ranking dipped to
11. However, the chess champ is unperturbed by it. “My goal is to become World No 1 and I’m doing everything needed to get there,” says the 26-year-old as she talks about her game plan — for chess and life.
What was it like to be a chess prodigy?
I remember when I returned home, my entire school came to receive me with garlands and flowers. And they would do that whenever I came back after winning a national or international level competition. At that time, I didn’t understand anything. The only thing I knew was that if I play well, I was treated like a queen. I just wanted to achieve the goals set by my parents. And I knew that our collective goal was to become ‘World Champion’. Soon, I began travelling abroad to compete in international championships. In 2000, I won a silver medal at the U-10 Girls World Youth Chess Championship, Spain — my first international championship. During a tournament, when a Chinese girl and I tied on the points table, everyone told me I was assured of silver medal. But I was scared that someone will take my silver, so I went and agreed for a draw without even informing my parents. It was a foolish thing to do, but at that age that silver became so important for me that I didn’t realise that I must fight for gold. Gradually, I began winning a lot of medals in junior circuits across the world.
In your last interview with us you told us that you travel with your pressure cooker. Has that changed?
(Smiles) I’ve gotten a lot lazier now and have learnt to get by with quick-to-make salads. But there is nothing like dal rice for comfort food when you are away from home for long periods of time. Initially, I used to find it difficult to find groceries in countries like China and Russia where people don’t know any other language. But thankfully, I’ve gotten better at the universal language of signs. Thanks to smart phones, you can also refer to an online dictionary.
You have won a clutch of the most prestigious chess championships in the world. Yet, your feats do not get the same recognition like badminton, wrestling or athletics. That must rankle?
Well, chess isn’t a viewer-friendly game. Viewers have little to connect with two players sitting hunched across a chess board. I wish there was some way to show people that chess takes a lot of effort. We might not sweat when playing a game, but it takes a lot of physical and mental ability to decide the best move.
In all your travels, there must’ve been some interesting men, who might have caught your attention?
(Smiles) Coming from a conventional family, it’s normal to have an arranged marriage. The only thought I had about guys is that at some point in life, my dad will find a suitable boy and I will get married to him.
Is there anything else that you’ve set yourself to do, besides achieving chess goals?
Well, I’ve travelled to close to 50 countries till date and I would love to see a few more countries.
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