Pallavi Shah flew in from the United States. K.S. Preetha boarded the flight from Kochi. Sasinas Haritha drove down from IIT Madras. The destination for all of them was this coastal town.
They may no longer be playing chess actively, but they didn’t wanted to miss the Chess Olympiad. “I was surprised to meet Pallavi here,” says Pravin Thipsay of his fellow-Maharashtrian, who played for the Indian women’s team at three Olympiads. “She wanted to have a look at the Olympiad, when India is hosting it for the first time.”
The journey was easier for Haritha. Unlike Pallavi, Haritha didn’t have to spend too much time or money on travel. She joined the IIT for her PhD three months ago.
