Anand in India

• Times of India: Chess readies kids for life
  Imagine chess being an integral part of classroom education. Introducing chess in public schools is a joint initiative of NIIT and its brand ambassador, chess Grandmaster Vishwanathan Anand. Known as the ‘NIIT Mindchampions Academy', this initiative will promote chess in the 700 schools where NIIT is offering computer education. For the over 300,000 students, it will be an opportunity to learn the game and improve performance in their studies.

• Newindpress: Chess grandmaster Anand to turn author
  He has spent a lifetime in the hallowed portals of the chess world, and now Viswanathan Anand is set to put it all down in black and white.Penguin India has roped in Anand – who is on a visit to his native Chennai after three long years – to pen his autobiography. "This book will be in a lot of ways related to how I learnt to play chess, about those yearly years when I went through junior championships and then finally played international chess."

  

• Sify News: My autobiography will not be scandalous
  Anand Viswanathan, India's most successful grandmaster, said he plans to co-author the two books, one an autobiography and the other a chess manual on how to play the game, in association with some established writers, who are yet to be finalised by the publishers Penguin. "There are two personas to a person. One the public and the other private. I will try to go beyond the scenes to look at the process of what makes a player...a champion. It will not be scandalous. But will be interesting." [Excerpts from an exclusive chat with the articulate champion].

• Times of India: Nothing 'Vishy Washy' about him
  At the stroke of midnight this New Year's eve, Chess Grandmaster Vishwanathan Anand will eat 12 grapes. "I'll be in Spain for New Year, where it is a custom to eat 12 grapes at midnight , signifying the end of 12 months and 12 strokes of the midnight hour," smiles the 34-year-old champion. While Anand enjoys nicknames like 'Fishy Vishy', 'Vishy Washy' and 'Lightning Kid', two are the most popular – 'Tiger from Madras' and 'Speedy Gonzales' in France.

  

• News today: Anand makes a new move
  In a world peopled by irascible, irritated, twitchy and testy human beings, Anand has been an oasis of peace and pleasantness. He generally comes across as a person just out of a temple chanting mantras rather than who is usually in cerebra-busting invective-mouthing situations. [Includes a short interview with Anand]

• Sify Sports: Anand has a memorable year
  Commenting on the year Anand in a release on Monday said: "I am really happy that the year went well. But it is time to wipe the slate clean. 2004 is a different year and I hope to better myself as a chess player and enjoy my chess." During the next year, Anand will compete in the Corus Chess Tournament in Wijk Aan Zee (January), where he would defend the title, play an exhibition match with Bulgarian Grand Master Vesselin Topalov in Sofia, Bulgaria, (Jan-February), Melody Amber Chess Tournament in Monaco (March) and Bundesliga weekends (February).

• From the NIIT site:
  About Viswanathan Anand
  Anand's Career
  Photo Gallery