Mama’s Story

If Aditya inherited determination, he learned discipline from his mother.

She remembers him as a highly energetic child who almost never walked anywhere.

“He was always running,” she says.

Instead of trying to suppress that energy, she searched for a way to direct it. Chess became the answer. It offered a place where movement could become concentration, restlessness could become calculation and energy could be converted into patience.

“I wanted him to learn to sit in one place,” she explains.

Over time, chess began changing more than his playing ability. It changed his temperament.

His mother says winning has not made him louder or more boastful. It has made him calmer, more confident and more composed.

“He doesn’t come jumping,” she says. “He comes politely and shows me that he has won.”

For her, that transformation carries as much meaning as the medal itself. The tournament confirmed his talent, but the journey revealed his character.

She wants both of her children to compete with discipline, integrity and humility. Winning matters, but respect matters too.

“Be humble with your opponent,” she says. “Whether you win or lose, respect everyone who comes into your journey: your teacher, your parent, your opponent and your friend.”

Her parenting philosophy is centred on learning. She considers herself a lifelong student and wants her children to see learning not as something that ends with school, but as a permanent way of living.

“Keep learning,” she tells them. “Be a student even at the end of your life.”