Aamir Khan will lead a bevy of Bollywood stars who will attempt to best chess grandmaster Viswanathan Anand in a series of games to raise funds for COVID-19.
The ‘Checkmate COVID - Celebrity Edition’ will see the five-time world chess champion taken on 10 Indian celebrities and business leaders that will also include South Indian star Kiccha Sudeep, Bollywood actor Riteish Deshmukh, singer Arijit Singh and singer-songwriter Ananya Birla.
Other notable celebrities to play against Anand include cricketer Yuzvendra Chahal, Manu Kumar Jain — MD of Xiaomi India, Nikhil Kamath, Co-founder of Zerodha, Bollywood producer Sajid Nadiadwala and Prachura Padakannaya, CEO. Xcetra Talent Management.
The ‘simultaneous exhibition’ match will raise funds for The Akshaya Patra Foundation’s COVID-19 relief feeding efforts. Proceeds from the event will serve vulnerable communities who don’t have the financial means to feed themselves as the devastating second wave of the pandemic grips in India.
Fans around the world can catch the grand master best some of the top names in Bollywood through Chess.com India’s YouTube channel. The event will be held on June 13, at 5pm India time and live-streamed.
“Despite being at the forefront in the International chess circuit, India has not received the recognition and prominence it deserves. Events like Checkmate COVID can draw the attention of public and celebrities to the chess fraternity and thereby, support social causes,” Padakannaya said in a media statement.
Shridhar Venkat, CEO Akshaya Patra, also thanked the film, business and sports fraternities for stepping up to help. “It is heartening to see the stalwarts from both fields once again come together for a cause. I am immensely grateful to Viswanathan Anand and these distinguished celebrities and businesspersons for understanding the criticality of the situation and extending their support to Akshaya Patra’s COVID-19 relief feeding efforts through this charity event.”
For those of you wondering whether Bollywood’s Mr. Perfectionist stands a chance against Anand, here’s a little nugget: Khan has been playing chess since the age of six, which he mastered from his grandmother. This is also not the first time Khan is facing Anand across a chess board. The duo played a charity match in 2015 as well.
