The rise of ‘Queen’: From ages 8 to 18, how an all-girl team is bringing free chess to rural India

NEW DELHI: The queen was not always the strongest piece in chess. From the inception of "Chaturanga" in India in the 6th century, and through its long journey across the Middle East before reaching Europe in the 15th century, the piece we now call the queen served only as a minister or counsellor.

Limited to a single diagonal step, it played a modest role on the board.



It took centuries of the game’s evolution before that restrained figure became the commanding piece we know today, one with unmatched mobility and game-changing ability.

That journey of the queen is enough to light up the eyes of eight-year-old Aenam, a fourth-standard student at Satpuda Valley Public School in Betul, Madhya Pradesh.

For Aenam, who picked up chess only a few months ago, learning the game is not just restricted to moves and openings, but it is now her way of making new friends.

“I was very excited to learn chess for the first time,” she said in a chat with TimesofIndia.com. “I enjoy it the most because we get to learn new things and also make new friends. I didn’t know anything about chess before.”

Thirteen-year-old Bhanuja, a seventh-standard student from Madhya Pradesh, says chess has taught her how to stay steady under pressure. “I felt excited but a little confused at first," she shared. "Yes, sometimes chess is hard and confusing. But it has helped me focus better and stay calm.”

For 14-year-old Aditi from Bhadohi, Uttar Pradesh, the benefit of playing chess is noticeable. “I gained confidence in playing chess and started doing it with a clear mind. I have self-confidence because I play chess,” she said.

And 18-year-old Shreya, who just cleared her higher-secondary exams topping her class, feels that the game has expanded her attention span.

“There are many new things I have learned from chess: how to make decisions in stressful situations, time management, how to be calm, and how to plan ahead,” she revealed. “Sometimes I get stuck in difficult positions, but instead of giving up, I practice more. Slowly, everything becomes clear.”

“For me, it has become a new skill. At home, everyone appreciates that I’m learning and encourages me,” she added.

For these girls, the world of chess might have remained far away, if not for a new grassroots programme that began earlier this year in July.

The beginning of bettering rural India

The initiative, called "Checkmate Betul", was the brainchild of Avika Shukla, a US-based high-school student raised in Gurgaon with family roots in Madhya Pradesh.

The idea sparked during one of Avika’s summer visits to India.

“I was playing chess with our housekeeper’s kids,” she recalled. “They asked me how I learned, and I said I used to play with my grandparents and later took some classes. Then they asked me, ‘Can you teach us?’”

Avika was about to fly back to the United States. “But I realised I could teach them, virtually. With all the technology we have today, a chess lesson is just a click away,” she told this website.

That one moment set off a chain reaction.

Avika reached out to young female chess players, arbiters, and enthusiasts she knew and admired from across the world.

Joining hands with Avika were six young women from across the world: WCM Zara Majid (Cayman Islands), WIM Iris Mou (New York City), FIDE Arbiter Christina Aziz (Gambia), Eesha Gorantla (New Jersey), Claire Cheng (New Jersey), and Audrey Smith (California).

Within weeks, a seven-member team formed, united by one conviction: girls in rural areas deserved the same access to chess education that many urban or privileged students enjoy.

And that became the foundation: for girls, and led entirely by girls.

But why Chess?

“Chess offers some of the highest cognitive benefits of any sport,” Avika explained. “It builds discipline like any physical sport, but also critical thinking and educational skills. There are studies showing how chess improves math.”

For rural girls, many of whom ask why they should learn chess in the first place, this becomes an important motivational tool.

“Our program is tied with schools, so the schools also understand how it is helping the girls,” she said.

The team began by tying up with schools in Betul, Madhya Pradesh. They chose rural pockets intentionally, places where structured chess training did not exist at all.

“Where we started, there was no such thing as a chess class,” Avika said. “We wanted to bring chess to a group of girls who would never have gotten the chance otherwise.”

Challenges off the board

The team started in Madhya Pradesh but has now expanded to Uttar Pradesh (with the help of Sheejan Learning Hub) and plans to enter Haryana next. But bringing chess into rural India wasn’t easy.

“The biggest challenge was convincing the girls that this is an exciting opportunity,” Avika revealed. “At first, it felt like just another activity. But slowly, when they started enjoying it, it became something they looked forward to.”

She remembered Diwali: “We didn’t have class that day. And many girls asked us why class was cancelled. Seeing that enthusiasm was beautiful.”

Classes are about 75 minutes.

“For 65 minutes we teach chess,” Avika explained. “But for the remaining 10 minutes, we bring in guest speakers or show recorded messages from female players. It inspires the girls and shows them the opportunities available.”

The curriculum is taught online, using bold visuals, arrows, patterns and interactive methods that surpass language barriers.

“Chess is simple to teach visually,” Avika explained. “And if, for example, Christina from Gambia is teaching, we also try to have a Hindi-speaking mentor in the class to assist if needed."

Despite the programme being free for girls, the logistics in rural India are rarely simple.

“In the beginning, most girls used their parents’ phones,” Avika added. “Infrastructure is a huge challenge: physical boards, projectors, training material, stable internet.”

Their solution came with tuition centres. The team secured sponsorship from ChessKid, which donated full premium access, worth around Rs 2 lakh, to every participating girl, while a collaboration with The Gift of Chess helped them provide physical boards to the girls.

“In places like Bhadohi, we now partner with local tuition centres where girls can sit across from each other with real boards,” she remarked. “We teach them online while they get hands-on practice offline.”

'One girl now playing district-level tournaments'

The programme has already begun to show results.

“One girl has improved so much she’s now playing district-level tournaments,” Avika stated proudly. “We just gave her the resources, she discovered a whole new passion.”


Another girl has seen a surprising side benefit: “Her English has improved a lot. Her parents told us she went to class to learn chess but ended up improving her language skills too.”

The team doesn’t limit enrolment strictly to rural areas, but rural India remains their focus. “If someone from a city wants to join, we never say no,” Avika clarified. “But our mission is to introduce chess to girls who would not have received the chance otherwise.”

What is the road ahead for such a bold initiative?

Looking forward, financial sustainability remains the biggest concern.

“Chess can become expensive,” Avika said. “Even top grandmasters say this. If some of these girls become serious players, we don’t want money to hold them back.”

They are exploring grants, writing to organisations, and even looking for private donors. But despite the hurdles, Avika’s voice holds excitement more than worry.

“The girls motivate us,” she said. “Their excitement, their confidence, their growth. Every time they show up with more enthusiasm than the previous week, it reminds us why we started.”

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And as the queen once rose from a quiet counsellor to the most powerful piece on the board, these girls, armed with newfound confidence, skills, and mentors across continents, might just be preparing to discover how far they can move.


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