I am the king on the white side of the checked terrain,
heard they have started loving my board more with each passing day….
so I went out to get updated about the recent games.
I have fifteen people with me, and the black king has got the same….
I went to each one and this is what they had to say….
“Viswanathan Anand is the hero”, said my queen,
With a number of awards stacked up in a pile….
He was the first Indian grandmaster at the age of nineteen
Since 25 year, he has won laurels for the country wherever he has been.
The man is the world chess champion in his very own style.
“Chess is like war on a board” says my knight,
By defeating Anand, Krishnan Sasikiran stirred the news into flares.
He got the Arjuna award for his memorable fights….
Coached by his father, he has been playing since nine with all his might,
to be ranked second among the best Indian players.
Then I saw my rook beaming with ecstatic pride,
“do you know Anubhav Tuknayat?” he asked,
This seven year old Chandigarh boy is already flowing with the tide….
Being the youngest sponsored player of the country ready for the ride,
he has inspired many others who are waiting to be unmasked.
Koneru Humpy was the lady of the day,
for my bishops who were blithely praising women power.
In 1999, she was Asia’s youngest international women master they say,
She is an emblem of pride and the nation’s glorious ray.
Four world champion trophies and a lot more flock up her victory’s tower.
Finally I went to a group of my pawns so very loyal,
and we discussed some less known facts about our game and its craze.
Like “shatranj” is the game of kings’ coz earlier it was played only by the royals,
Like “checkmate” comes from the word “shah mat” meaning defeat of the king’s toil,
And they said, “The Pawns are the soul of the game” according to an old known phrase….
image: http://img.timeinc.net/time/daily/2007/0710/india_chess_1019.jpg