That Arjun Erigaisi started here and made it big gives us satisfaction: Brilliant Trophy organising secretary

“The fact that some of the likes like Arjun and many other players made their first impression in this championship and went on to make it big gives us huge satisfaction,” said the former national player.

J. Subrahmanyam, organising secretary of the Brilliant Trophy chess tournament for the last 17 years. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

When an eight-year-old Erigaisi Arjun played in the Brilliant Trophy chess championship long back, little did the organising secretary J. Subrahmanyam realise that one day Arjun would be one of the most feared players in contemporary chess.

So, when the 200th edition of the Brilliant Trophy gets underway on Friday, it is a unique record of sorts for an individual to organise a chess event for so long and without a break every month. Even during the pandemic, the online edition was on to sustain the interest of chess players.

“Well, the whole idea of starting the event was to give a chance for the players to showcase their talent. Initially, I thought three or four would be a big achievement. But thanks to the support of Mr. K. Narayana Reddy, now MLC, and chairman of Brilliant Grammar School (Dilsukhnagar), we could keep it going,” says Subrahmanyam in a chat with  Sportstar.

“The fact that some of the likes like Arjun, Harsha Bharathakoti, R. Raja Rithvik made their first impression in this championship and went on to make it big gives us huge satisfaction,” said the former national player who had to discontinue playing for want of support.

A stunning Rs 20 lakhs as prize money and about 4000 trophies were distributed so far in the Brilliant Trophy are also possible because of the support of the State Chess Association and the players, said Subrahmanyam, who is also into regular coaching whose trainee (online), Sriyansh Kattak, won the US under-7 title recently.

To celebrate the milestone, we have decided to have a hefty increase in prize money to Rs. 1 lakh for the rapid event and Rs. 10,000 for the blitz event, he said.

“Yes, there were the occasional obstacles put up by some who didn’t want the event to go on. But fortunately, with the AICF also recognising my efforts, it has been a huge success,” Subrahmanyam concluded.