Nivaan was also a part of the recently concluded World School Chess Championship held in Albania where he was the youngest candidate in the Indian contingent. He scored four points of nine rounds in the U-7 category and vowed to win the title the next time around.
A senior KG student of the Vibgyor High School in Magarpatta, Pune, Nivaan’s introduction to the sport came when he was just four-and-half years old by his father Rathin. Having learnt the game in two days, the chess sensation shocked his father with a win over him, on just the third day.
“Words can’t describe my excitement at the moment. I would like to thank Vibgyor High school for all their support without which, my son wouldn’t have been able to achieve what he has done today,” said an excited Rathin, praising Nivaan’s school.
Nivaan trains under the watchful eyes of coach Vishwanath Sandilya at the South Mumbai Chess Academy (SMCA) in Koregaon Park Annex branch. Sandilya has all the reasons to be proud looking at the way his young ward has taken giant strides in chess and he believes that the wonderkid possesses the right mindset to rewrite all major records in the sport.
His mother Priti heaped praise on SMCA and his coaches Bajali and Sandilya as she said, “I want to thank SMCA for leading my son in the right direction. They have been really supportive all this while. Also I would like to thank his coaches Balaji sir and Sandilya sir for providing him with the right kind of guidance-just what he needed to excel in the sport.”
Nivaan spends four-five hours a day working on his game and learning how to become better. It’s no surprise that he has already won a total of 17 trophies and nine medals at the district and state level. He stood third at the state level, bagged the seventh position in the state school level and the 13th position at the national school level in the U-7 age category competitions. All this and he’s not even seven!
With the way Nivaan is taking strides in the sport, the day isn’t far when he fulfills his dream of becoming a Grandmaster. An ardent admirer of Norgwegian Grandmaster Magnus Carlsen, has well and truly become one of the hottest properties in the Maharashtrian chess circuit today.