Chess Chronicles in India Before Anand Era!

Centuries before Vishwanathan Anand came onto the scene and transformed chess in India as it is now, it is said that Chess originated in India. It was not called Chess back then, and it was called Chaturanga, or four parts. The four parts indicated the four divisions of an Indian army, which are infantry (pawns), cavalry (knights), elephants (bishops), and chariots (rooks). The game was played on a rectangular board. 

Chess continued to evolve and made its way to other continents as well, such as Europe, and the game continued, but as many believe, the game of chess originated in India. There are plenty of Indian moves in Chess like the King’s Indian Defense, Nimzo Indian Defense, and the Queen’s Indian Defense. Under the Indian rules of Chess in the 19th century, only the central pawns had the privilege to move two squares initially, and the En Passant move was banned. 

Then John Cochrane, a Scottish Lawyer, entered India. He not only authored Chess books but also played the game against legends of his time - Staunton, La Bourdonnais, and Deschapelles. In the Chess World, the opening arising after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nxe5 d6 4.Nxf7 is named after him. He was stationed as a Barrister in Kolkata and later became the President of the Calcutta Chess Club. He started playing against an Indian player named Mahesh Chandra Banerjee,  who credits Cochrane for improving his game. 

After his stint in India, Cochrane introduced the term “Indian Openings,” and this was firmly established in the Chess literature. It is also said that Swami Vivekananda was also great at playing Chess. Another Monk who played Chess at a high level was Om Swami and he also wrote a fictional book on Chess named The Last Gambit. 

Now let’s talk about a few players who came long before Vishwanathan Anand came into the picture. One of them was Mir Sultan Khan, who was at the time in British India. He was considered the Strongest player of Punjab by the age of 21, and he became a National Champion by 1928. He went on to win the British Championships in 1929, 1932, and 1933. 

Then, in 1935, the first International Master from India was born. His name was Manuel Aaron. He earned the title of International Master at the age of just 26. Along with being a mastermind of Chess, he has also contributed significantly to the growth of Indian Chess by organizing many events and camps. He was also the Chairman of the All India Chess Federation. 

Manuel Aaron was also responsible for creating the Tal Club in India. Aaron was a student of the Russian Language at the Soviet Cultural Centre in Madras, and there were many Russian publications on Chess available at that time. Aaron thought he could help many Indian Chess players if he could translate Chess articles into English. And when the Madras House of Soviet Culture saw that he was a Russian Language student, they approached Aaron with an idea for a Chess club. That is how the Tal Club was born. 

Then, when Vishwanathan Anand was just 11, a Carpenter named Mohamed Rafique Khan came into the picture as he won India’s first-ever medal by securing Silver at the Malta Olympiad in 1980. His story is remarkable as he overcame poverty to achieve success in a sport that is not widely celebrated in India. He first came into the limelight at the 1975 Madhya Pradesh Chess Championship, where he defeated many renowned players. 

Talking about Women’s Chess, the National Chess Championship was founded in 1974, and it was at this time that the Indian Chess community got to witness the greatness of the Khadilkar sisters. For the next 10 years, the title would always be awarded to one of three sisters: Vasanti, Jayshree, or Rohini. 

Rohini Khadilkar is the first female Chess player to compete in the Indian Chess Championship, and she is also the first to receive the Arjuna Award. She is also the first to win the National Women’s Chess Championship in three consecutive years. She is also the first Asian player to beat a Chess computer. Then came Vishwanathan Anand, and the rest is history.