The wittiest Chitappa
by Siddharth Viswanathan
We are sitting at the dinner table of a posh Mumbai restaurant. The time is somewhere during
the start of the new millennium. He is cracking jokes with
his trademark wit. His laughter on the jokes ensures that we also
laugh along. Suddenly, one person comes to the table. "Can I have
your autograph?", the person asks. Yes, this took place much before the
time of selfies. With one person, others also made their way for an
opportunity to get his autograph. He obliges them all. It is only
then I realise that I am actually sitting with a world champion.
That too in chess, a game which was invented in India and which
fittingly, is being dominated by an Indian who scorched a revolutionary path
to success.
Anand almost always obliges to the requests of people wanting his autographs, right from a very young age!
That is the special ability of Viswanathan
Anand, the five-time world chess champion who celebrated his golden
birthday on December 11. His humility and down-to-earth nature is the
prime reason that makes his personality as a world champion very
alluring. If you do not know how to play chess, a crash course in humility after
having achieved so much is a lesson to take away from Anand. There have been
plenty of tributes to Anand from various publications and
journalists. Writing about Anand is like writing something new about Sachin
Tendulkar. It is a nightmare for writers as their achievements
have been chronicled so meticulously.
Writing about Anand is a tough task for me.
In one publication, I was accused of conflict of interest just for
writing about him. Thus, each time I wrote about him, I had to write a
disclaimer below every article. What is presented here are some of
the memorable moments that I encountered in my journey with Anand, a
person whom I know really closely.
Early Memories
What are my first memories of Vishy Anand,
the world chess champion who is also my uncle? The earliest photo
that I have of him is me sitting on my grandmother's lap and chewing
off his purse with him beaming his million-dollar smile. At that
time, he had already made giant strides and as I would later know he
would become the first chess Grandmaster from India.
What were the first signs of Anand's
greatness in chess? For me, it was Reggio Emilia 1991. At that time, the
Soviet Union had not disintegrated and the chess grandmasters
coming from that part of the globe had established a new benchmark for
dominance. The first crack in the massive red wall of the Soviet Union
was when Anand had defeated Garry Kasparov and drew with
Anatoly Karpov, two super grandmasters at the height of their powers.
To have held Karpov, his 'idol' in his playing years was legendary.
To have defeated Kasparov was legendary beyind belief. Anand finished ahead of the two and won
Reggio Emilia. If the collapse of communism is credited with the fall of
the Berlin Wall in 1989, then Anand's feats at the Reggio Emilia ensured
that the Soviet Union dominance in chess would end in the coming
decades.
The 22-year-old boy who broke the dominance of Soviet Union in chess
Lack of killer instinct, The Horror Of
Sanghi Nagar, Lausanne 'Corpse' And Kasparov
In our home, we tend to whitewash the year
1994. There is an unwritten rule in that we do not mention the
name Gata Kamsky and Sanghi Nagar anywhere. The year and venue
was the first major low point for Anand. He was a step closer to
take on Kasparov and Karpov for the PCA and FIDE titles. He had taken
the lead but choked in spectacular fashion. He then lost a rapid
play-off in just 17 moves. The lightning kid beaten in his own game.
The world knew the word choke in 1999 when South Africa tied with
Australia in the World Cup semi-final in Edgbaston. I knew about this
term in 1994 itself.
After leading the match 2-0, Anand lost two games to Kamsky. The classical score was tied. The match moved into rapids where Kamsky won 2-0.
In 1995, the pain of 1994 was extinguished.
After years, it was the clash everyone had waited for between the
master and the pretender to the throne. Kasparov, a bonafide legend of
the sport and the world champion, squared off against Anand in the
World Chess Championship at the World Trade Centre in New York. We were
all waiting in anticipation after the end of every game. A
draw was greeted with relief. Every game, we would silently
express our relief he had not lost. After eight drawn games, Anand gave a
country of a billion people, hope by winning against Kasparov in round nine.
For us, it was a celebration of unseen proportions. However,
as the chess world would know, Kasparov's 'dirty tactics' would
unsettle Anand.
In the next game, after every move,
Kasparov would bang the door and the closed room would shake. Why a closed
room? Due to fire safety regulations at the World Trade Centre.
Years later, Anand admitted in an interview that he made the mistake of
not protesting at that time when in hindsight he should have. However,
another lesson in sportsmanship. Anand had realised his
position was bad and thus, he did not want to be labelled a 'sore loser'.
He lost the championship by a margin of 10.5-7.5. A golden chance was missed.
Even today, we still say, "Damm you, Kasparov" for whatever
happened in New York.
The match where Anand was so close to winning. The World Championship match against Kasparov in 1995 | Photo: Reuters
In 1997, Anand played non-stop chess for a
month in Groningen to top the field of 96 players. In cricket, that
is like playing 31 consecutive ODIs in one month. He qualified
for the World Championships to face Karpov. Although he
was undefeated in 31 games, by the time he arrived in Lausanne for the
championship in 1998, he was in his own words, "Karpov waited
for the corpse of his challenger to be delivered in a coffin." It was no surprise that Anand lost. However, what
hurt me the most was the constant murmurs that Anand lacked the
killer instinct to become world champion. Anand will always be remembered
as a good player but not a legendary player. All such murmurs grew
louder as we entered the new millennium.
The unfair match - Anand vs Karpov in Lausanne 1998 | Photo: Dagobert Kohlmeyer
Trying to keep the crowd away
In 2008, Anand had decided to come to
Bhopal on a cold November winter's day. He had told us to keep
the visit extremely private. He was exhausted. However, as luck would
have it, it was election season in Madhya Pradesh. Raja Bhoj airport
would see plenty of politicians making trips all over the state
and sometimes to New Delhi. So, reporters would be stationed to
catch a glimpse of important personalities. Unfortunately, one of the reporters spotted
Anand getting into our car. Even more unfortunately, he tipped off
one of the media guys who by coincidence was staying in the same
society that we were.
In the next morning, we notice that about
50-60 camerapersons are positioned near the lawn. The news had
spread. Anand had arrived in the lake city. By the evening time, every print
publication and radio station in Bhopal had managed to make what
was a private family visit into a public affair.
A few quiet moments with family for Anand were not easy to come by. Vishy and Aruna Anand with Siddharth Viswanathan (left) and his parents Shivakumar Viswanathan (Anand's brother) and his wife.
The first decade of the millennium was
exhilirating for us in the family. Anand finally had silenced the
detractors by winning the World Championship in Tehran, 2000. There were
still some critics who said that it could not be legitimised as there
was a split in FIDE. In 2007, the championship was unified and a double Round Robin eveny was played to crown the undisputed world
champion. Anand finally became the undisputed champion. In 2008, he
defeated Vladmir Kramnik in Bonn, who had dethroned Kasparov in 2000
in match-play by a solid point. Anand had crossed the magical mark of
2800 ELO and was the world number one ranked chess player in the
world. For those who do not know the 2800 ELO mark, in simple terms, it is
like having a Test average of over 100.
So much had happened, this reception was
the crowning glory for us and also for Anand, who was on top of the world
in every sense. The crowd just could not be kept away, neither in our
society and neither at the restaurant.
Eclipsing my wedding
I was getting married in December 2013. My
in-laws were based in Mathura, the land of Lord Krishna. We had
invited Anand for my wedding and he arrived. It was the first time he
had come to Mathura. When I asked him about how Mathura was, he replied
in his trademark wit, "It is a quaint place. It is like how Krishna
left it 5000 years ago minus the IOC refinery." Anand was part of
my wedding procession and he did dance a jig for three seconds (video is in our
custody and never making it public).
Anand with Siddharth Viswanathan at the latter's wedding
There was a special request for police
protection for him which was granted. He was coming from Brijwasi Lands
Inn, one of the lone four-star hotels in Mathura and he was
accorded total security. He was seated in the front and he posed for photos
with me. Was indeed a proud moment. After my thread ceremony in
1995 and his wedding in 1996, this was the third event where we
were together.
However, the media did it again. Somehow, a
report leaked that he had attended the wedding in Mathura Refinery
Nagar. What followed was a travesty of journalism. The headline was:
Viswanathan Anand steals the show at nephew's marriage. The report
mentioned my wife's name, my father-in-law's name but my name was not
even mentioned. In both Hindi and English reports, my name never came up!
The Hindi report went one further - stating that the occasion of my
marriage was eclipsed and people came to see only him which became a
source of pride for Mathura Refinery Nagar. When I think about it, I
laugh out loud.
Achieved Everything
He is a five-time world champion. The only
player to have won the world title in three different styles.
Being in the top 10 of the world chess rankings for a staggering 28
years. Won the World Rapid title in 2017 in Riyadh by also beating the
current champion Magnus Carlsen along the way. Winning the 2010
World Championship by battling a volcano and an adamant Bulgarian Chess
Federation. Winning
the Amber Chess Rapid and Blitz tournaments regularly. Chess Oscar
five times. A minor planet in the solar system named after him. Winning the Rajiv Gandhi Khel
Ratna and Padma Vibhushan. When he achieved it in 1988, he was the
first Indian Chess Grandmaster. Now, 31 years later, after
him, India has 64 more Grandmasters.
Is there anything left to achieve for him?
Not really. He has actually done it all. Yet, his passion remains. When
he won the World Rapid Championship in Riyadh in 2017, he told me
with the words that really stuck with me, "It is nice to be known
as a current champion rather than a former champion." The quote
summed up Anand in a nutshell. Quiet desire, ruthlessness and the fight to
continue achieving success. Happy Belated Birthday, Chitappa.
For me, you shall and always will be the person who cracks the
wittiest jokes with a straight face.
Anand with the closest members of his family | Photo: Siddharth Viswanathan's Facebook
About the author
Siddharth Viswanathan studied journalism at the University of Mumbai. He is a well known sports journalist and has worked for several periodicals and websites including Dainik Bhaskar, Cricbuzz, Indiatimes, NDTV sports etc. Currently he is the digital sports head of News Nation. He is also the nephew of Vishy Anand!
Previous articles in Vishy's December
#01: Anand Viswanathanovich by Ravi Abhyankar
#02: Inspiration, teammate, second by Sandipan Chanda
#03: In India, chess = Anand by Sethuraman
#04: India having 65 GMs is unthinkable without Anand by Surya Ganguly
#05: Tyger Tyger burning bright by Upendra Rawat
#06: The Anand Files by Michiel Abeln
#07: From an 18-year-old talent to a 50-year-old legend by Frederic Friedel
#08: Last man standing by Vladimir Kramnik
#09: A rival and a fan by Peter Svidler
#10: I walked with a giant by Praful Zaveri
#11: Co-author by Susan Ninan
Want to share an Anand story this December?
This entire December, ChessBase India is celebrating Vishy Anand's 50th birthday. We would like you to contribute any interesting story that you might have with Anand so that we can publish it on our newspage. In case you would like to share, you can do so from this google form link. Alternatively you can also send it to us via chessbaseindia@gmail.com
The best article, anecdote, or story submitted and published on our newspage will get this ChessBase 15 copy signed by Vishy Anand!
You can also get the Vishy Anand 50th anniversary special t-shirt launched by ChessBase India. It comes in two colours - grey and white.
The special design made for Vishy's 50th birthday
