Now that the dust is starting to settle on India’s gold-medal-winning efforts in the Chess Olympiad, I think it is time to speak about my exchange with Viswanathan Anand on the day of the final round of games. In fact, the previous afternoon I had spoken to him and requested him for an interview at the end of the competition. Anand has been a friend for years, and he readily agreed. What he said was that he would send me a detailed video the moment the final round of games were done, as he wasn’t sure if he would be in a position to join us live. It was perfectly fine with me, and I had made plans accordingly.
Soon after the competitions were decided, I messaged Anand. Even before I could take my hands off the phone, his video had landed. Clearly, he had recorded it as soon as the matches got over. In news, it is all about timing and this was real breaking news thanks to Anand. India wins gold, and you have Anand reacting for you – in chess, at least, it couldn’t get better. Our backend team at RevSportz turned it around in real quick time and the traction that what Anand said got was evidence of how much people loved the video.
The point, however, is not that. The point is that within an hour of sending the video, I got another message from Anand. This time round, he asked if he could use the video as well. For a minute, I was stunned. It actually took me a minute or so to understand what he was asking. It was his own video. He was the one who shot it and sent it across. Now, he was asking me if he could use it for his own Instagram handle after I had used it. That was when I realised it was very Anand. Because he had done it for me, he was now asking if he could also use it.
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While I immediately reverted saying that he did not even need to ask, I also realised why Anand is different. It was proof of why every single chess player now making India proud regards Anand as their mentor and guiding light. As Arjun Erigiasi said to me, “It is all because of him. We all started playing chess seeing Vishy sir. And now I am hugely excited because I will be playing in the same team as him in the forthcoming Global Chess League (GCL) in London.”
Arjun, as whoever has spoken to him will know, isn’t really expressive when he speaks. More deadpan than excited, if you know what I mean. But when it was about Anand, Arjun was all animated. Here is a man who inspired a generation and India is now reaping the benefits of that.
Someone asked me yesterday if it was fair to call the current generation “Vishy’s army”. Army or not, I don’t know. What I do know is that a revolution is underway in India, and Anand continues to be at the forefront of it. What we did not have when Anand arrived on the scene was a “chess culture”. Now, we do. It was all jugaad then. It is all structured now. And Anand can be very proud of having helped create that structure. As we turn our attention to the GCL, I will yet again be keen to see Anand play. Some habits don’t really change!
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