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Gear up for the Akshayakalpa-BNCF Grand Prix Finale!

by Hinduja Reddy - 13/02/2019

The stage is set for Karnataka’s first Chess Grand-Prix Finale! The Akshayakalpa-BNCF Grand Prix Series features seven qualifier tournaments and one Grand Finale tournament. Over the course of seven qualifier tournaments, which began from 29th July 2018 to 20th January 2019, forty players have gained the right to play in the Grand Finale. These 40 players will now fight at the Grand Prix finale on 17th of February 2019. The first prize is Rs.1,00,000, the second prize is Rs.50,000 and the third is Rs.25,000. The excellent prize money has ensured that all the biggest names of the Karnataka state have qualified for the Grand Prix Finale. Read this curtain raiser report by Hinduja Reddy.

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.

After global metros like London and New York, Bengaluru has become the first Indian city to join the list of cities that have its own logo. | Photo: TNM

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.

Grand Prix Finale’s Top-seed is none other than India’s 50th Grandmaster - GM Thejkumar M.S! | Photo: Niklesh Jain

‘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!

Reigning Karnataka state champion IM Girish Koushik is the 2nd seed. | Photo: Amruta Mokal

‘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!

Facing problem against the Leningrad Dutch? Watch how IM Girish Koushik demolishes it.

Former state champion IM Viani D'cunha. | Photo: Roshan D'souza

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:

GM Daniel King and Viani analyse the game where the International Master from Mangalore demolished a 2600+ Grandmaster from round 1 of the Sharjah Masters 2017. | Video Courtesy: PowerPlayChess

FM Gahan MG is known for his amazing skill in the shorter format of the game. | Photo: Akshayakalpa

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 is one of the youngest qualifier for the Finale. | Photo: Muralidhar Rao

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 Srinivasan is another promising player from the state to qualify for the Finale. | Photo: K. Srinivasan

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.’

Sware Lakshmi is the current Karnataka Sub-Junior Girls Champion and she is the only female qualifier for the Finale! | Photo: Hinduja Reddy

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 might be rated only 1194 but he has made it to the Finale and ready to lock horns with the Titans! | Photo: Sachin Rathi

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 took everyone by surprise when he came 2nd position in the B qualifier and was rated only 1301 then | Photo: Sriharsha Donti

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.’

Born in 2009, Apoorv who is rated 1688 is the youngest qualifier for the Grand Finale. | Photo: Sanjay Kamble

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.'

Check out Apoorva's creativity in this video

Read the testimony of Tanmay to know how he qualified for the Grand Finale. | Photo: Hinduja Reddy

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

IM Ravi Gopal Hegde is an experienced International Master and a former National B Champion (1995). | Photo: Amruta Mokal

Aravind Shastry, C.E.O of United Karnataka Chess Association . | Photo: Amruta Mokal

Vinayak Kulkarni (Left) and Gavi Siddayya (Right) are chess coaches. | Photo: Hinduja Reddy

Likhit Chilukuri , Co-founder of ChessMine. | Photo: Hinduja Reddy

H.G Santhosh (Left) is a chess coach and Sanjay Sindhia (Right) is a Chartered Accountant cum chess coach. | Photo: Roshan D'souza

R. Ravindran (Left) is a five-time Karnataka State Champion and Maj. Kumara Keshav (Right) is an Ex-Army man who is currently working in Bosch India. | Photo: Roshan D'souza

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

BNCF Grand Prix Qualifier

Date

Name

Rtg

Pts.

 

1

29-07-2018

Girish A. Koushik

2399

6,5

 

 

29-07-2018

Yashas D.

2113

6,0

 

 

29-07-2018

Kalki Eshwar D

1341

5,5

 

 

29-07-2018

Gahan M G

2308

7,0

 

 

29-07-2018

YASHAS Donthi

1301

5,5

 

 

29-07-2018

ARNAV MURALIDHAR

1575

5,5

 

2

26-08-2018

Santoshkashyap Hg

1941

5,5

 

 

26-08-2018

Yash Abhijit Patil

1293

5,5

 

 

26-08-2018

Gupta Anshurup

1410

5,5

 

 

26-08-2018

Arvind Shastry

2253

7,0

 

 

26-08-2018

Rakshith Srinivasan

1230

6,0

 

 

26-08-2018

Gavi Siddayya

2051

5,5

 

3

09-09-2018

Ojas Kulkarni

2028

6,0

 

 

09-09-2018

Shree Krishna Pranama

1317

5,5

 

 

09-09-2018

Sanjay Sindhia Mh

1845

5,5

 

 

09-09-2018

Likhit Chilukuri

1766

5,0

 

 

09-09-2018

Komal Srivatsav Sajja

1416

5,0

 

 

09-09-2018

Kumar Keshav

0

5,0

 

4

01-10-2018

Gautam J.K.

1802

5,5

 

 

01-10-2018

Rajesh Chandrashekaran

1454

5,5

 

 

01-10-2018

Aravinda B R

1565

5,0

 

 

01-10-2018

Swara Lakshmi S Nair

1207

5,0

 

5

04-11-2018

Viani Antonio Dcunha

2356

6,0

 

 

04-11-2018

Hegde Ravi Gopal

2077

6,0

 

 

04-11-2018

Tanmay Srinath

1388

5,0

 

 

04-11-2018

Abhay B Bhandarkar

1230

5,0

 

6

09-12-2018

Darshan V P S

1720

6,0

 

 

09-12-2018

Apoorv Kamble

1440

5,5

 

 

09-12-2018

Nachiketh Adiga

1269

5,0

 

 

09-12-2018

Medhansh Rathi

1144

5,0

 

7

20-01-2019

Thejkumar M. S.

2433

6,5

 

 

20-01-2019

Kulkarni Vinayak

2058

6,0

 

 

20-01-2019

 

Balkishan A.

2044

5,0

 

 

20-01-2019

 

Manjunath J.

2064

5,0

 

 

20-01-2019

 

Kaushik G Iyer

1318

5,0

 

G.K Muralidhara (Left) and Prasanna Kumar L.R (Right) [the other two core members are their respective wives Madhurya Murali and Uma B Prasan] make sure that the event runs smoothly. They are the brains behind Bangalore North Chess Forum, a non-profit organization. | Photo: Roshan D'souza

The sponsor of the event, Akshayakalpa Organic Dairy— ensures economic viability of the farming. Its aspiration is to help a farmer family earn a net income of Rs 1 lakh a month. Read about the initiative here

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