Gear up for the Akshayakalpa-BNCF Grand Prix Finale!

Akshayakalpa-Bangalore North Chess Forum presents Grand Prix Finale!

by Hinduja Reddy

Blessed with a benevolent climate, Bengaluru (Bangalore) is best known as the Garden City or the IT capital of India. It's hard to slap a single characterization onto its geography and people. The city has a lot of greenery with trees lined up along both sides of most of the roads. The many gardens and parks are very soothing in what would have been a jungle of concrete. As for its citizens, what they have in common is an independent spirit, a love of the outdoors and a fierce devotion to where they live.

The chess scene in Bengaluru is lively, with a tournament taking place on one of the Sunday's every month. The BEL Officer’s Club is situated amidst lush greenery. The calm settings provides the right atmosphere for playing chess, it also inspires parents and players to relax or stroll around.  Since 2015, the Club has been a host for one-day rapid tournaments. But, Akshayakalpa-BNCF Grand Prix Finale is not just another weekend tournament. The stakes are high with first, second and third prize boasting of Rs 1,00,000, Rs. 50,000 and Rs. 25,000 respectively. Having attracted crème de la crème of Karnataka’s chess players—the Grand Prix Finale is all set to take place on 17th February 2019.

‘The Indian Smyslov’ Thejkumar became the first chess Grandmaster from Karnataka. He is also the only Karnataka player to win the National-B crown. His story of grit, determination, persistence and true love is inspiring for any ambitious player. Here’s what he has to say about the Finale to ChessBase India. “We have lot of chess tournaments taking place in India, but we don't see the events like Grand Prix.  I know it is difficult for the organizers to organize such events but as a player I am happy to be a part of the event and make it to Finale. Looking forward for the GP Finale.”

After winning the Grand Prix Qualifier event in January, Thejkumar was also the chief guest for the tournament. The kids were in for a wise advice from the Grandmaster who has played more than 2000 tournament games: “Nowadays, I see a lot of kids are taking part in Chess Tournaments. A lot of tournaments are held in age category formats. I feel kids should take part in open category events. It will give them a chance to play rated players or titled players which will give good exposure to them. They will not have fear to play against rated player or titled player when they play often with them,” said Thejkumar in the closing ceremony. An expert advice!

‘The Cool and Confident’ Girish Koushik was one of India's most talented youngsters winning just about every youth tournament that he attended at the National, Asian as well as the World Level. He was the first player to qualify for Grand Prix Finale. In 2019, he took part in the Delhi Chess Festival Category A and Chennai Grandmaster Open, scoring well in both the events. Here is a video which shows how strong positional player Girish is!

IM Viani D’cunha is a sharp tactician with a fide rating of 2368. He graduated from R.V. College of Engineering, Bangalore. He won the Karnataka State Championship 2017. If you want to know his strength then watch the video below:

Fide Master Gahan MG has many achievements under his belt. He was the Karnataka State Rapid Chess Champion-2016. He won countless tournaments in Bangalore and represented India from the last 10 years. He currently works as Network Consultant Engineer at Cisco Systems and also he is the co-founder of Chess-Saga.

Not only top players but also seasoned and budding players will compete for the Top 3 prizes in the Grand Prix Finale. Giving an excellent opportunity for the young players to lock horns with the experienced players. The youngsters were asked about how they feel about qualifying for the Finale and share few thoughts about the organization.

Arnav Muralidhar, an upcoming prodigy: ‘I am happy to be part of the Grand Prix Finale. It is very strong tournament and am feeling proud to be part of it. Waiting to play against strong players. I like the venue BNCF uses for its monthly tournament. I have played many nationals so far. The way the tournament is conducted in BNCF is no less than any of the nationals.’

Rakshith: ‘I feel happy to play against the strongest players of Karnataka. It will be a good learning experience and I am proud to be a part of the Grand Prix Finale. The monthly tournaments are giving opportunities to young chess players to compete with experienced senior players giving them exposure.’

Swara Lakshmi S Nair: ‘I am a regular player of BNCF since 2016. I have got many trophies and prizes in various tournaments conducted by BNCF. They organize the tournament in a systematic manner. I am happy to play against strong players.’

Medhansh Rathi: ‘I am feeling excited as it will give me opportunity to play against strong players in Finale. This will definitely help me improve my game. The best thing I like about BNCF is the venue. Playing hall is quiet for players to play and after the game, we can go out and relax under the shades of the trees.’

Yashas Donthi: ‘I feel great to play in the Grand Prix Finale. Superb organizers. One of the best venues in Bangalore, with neat and clean environment. The place is lush green outside and lovely.’

Apoorv Kamble : 'I  feel great to make the qualification round of Grand Prix finale. I am excited about the finale. The monthly tournaments are organized at a fixed venue, which is nice and spacious. The organizers do take care of starting and finishing the tournament in time.'

Tanmay Srinath: ‘It feels really great, to be able to play chess with the best in Karnataka. To be honest, I never had an idea of how this worked, and credit for me playing this goes to my friends Sujay B M and Tejas Cavale for literally forcing me to enter one of the qualifiers. I didn't have great expectations, but after scoring 4.5/5, drawing with IM Ravi Hegde along the way, I felt I had a chance. I then lost to the eventual winner, but a draw in the last round was enough for me to secure qualification. Looking back, this is one of the best things that have happened to me, and I am now really looking forward to the main tournament.’

Other notable players of Karnataka in the fray

Says the experienced Ravindran, "I won first State Championship in 1972. Last time in 1987. 1976 also. Rest I don't remember. Incidentally Frederic Friedel of ChessBase wanted me to input games for ChesssBase when he just started but I lost his visiting card."

List of Grand Prix Qualifiers

About the Author

Hinduja Reddy is a 23-year-old chess entrepreneur who lives in Bengaluru. She is a former National Women's B bronze medalist, chess writer, and co-founder of ChessMine events. In her free time, she likes to follow the games of her friends GM Nihal Sarin and GM Srinath Narayanan. 

This article was edited by Nongsha Angom