Legends of the New Era: Padmini Rout

Padmini Rout strutted into the spotlight on 5th January 1994, coming from the not-so small town of Barbil, right in Odisha, India. She had a family that was her cheer squad, pushing her to kill it in school and all the fun stuff outside of it. And let me tell you, she had some mad skills in chess! Her dad, who was into mining, was the person who introduced her to the chessboard when she was just a child.

Padmini did her schooling in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, and she was like a pro at juggling homework with her chess hobby. She went to KIIT University, which is in her hometown, and studied Commerce while still being all about chess life. She is like a chess wizard or something! She started winning trophies from a very young age.

In 2005, she was the queen of the Indian Under-13 championships in Kolkata. But that was just the start! In 2006 and 2008, she went to Asia and came back with gold from the under-12 and under-14 girls' championships. And she scored big with the Biju Patnaik award in 2007, which is like getting an A+ from the coolest teacher ever. It just kept on getting better! In 2008, she hit gold at the World Youth under-14. She's a chess ninja!

Then in 2009, she won the Ekalavya Award in Odisha. And she kept racking up the medals from all these big chess competitions all over the world. In 2010, she scored a bronze at the World Junior Chess Championships, and in the Asian Junior (U-20) girls' category, she was unstoppable. She kept on winning, taking home the gold at the 2014 and 2015 Indian Women's Chess Championships. Plus, she totally ruled the Women's Chess Olympiad in Norway in 2014 and the Asian Nations Cup in 2014 and 2018.

Padmini has the ultimate chess career with titles like International Master (IM) and Woman Grandmaster (WGM), which are like the VIP passes of the chess world, handed out by FIDE. Now, she's still playing chess and inspiring the next generation of chess champs. She's like a chess fairy godmother, making little girls believe they can be the next big thing. Her story is like a feel-good movie waiting to happen from a small-town girl who takes over the chess world. And she's still at it, showing everyone that with hard work and passion, you can become a star at whatever you love. She's the poster girl for following your dreams and slaying the chessboard while encouraging other Indian girls to join in on the fun and become the next big deal in the chess scene.