The easel was set-up. With a colourful palette, a ready brush, a myriad ideas and a plethora of strokes in his repertoire, the artist was ready. Movements so elegant, so graceful, so profound and ever so sublime would have the audience spell-bound and rapt at attention. There was a surreal touch to his work. Oh the finesse of it all! His actions were exquisite and par excellence. More often than not, the way he would go about his job would be lucid and ethereal… For, his competitors would be left far behind gaping, seemingly tactless and wondering what had just hit them. Such was his dominance when he and his challengers took stage. All but one. It is known that Mother Nature has her own unique way to deal with dominance. And so, it se...

Feeling physically unfit? Worried about a loss in mental acuity? See yourself as intellectual but want to hit out when things aren't going your way? Like sports? Like board games? Then why not take up Chess Boxing! Combination sports are all the rage these days and Chess Boxing is no exception. Devised by cartoonist, Enki Bilal in 1992, and fully realised in 2001, Chess Boxing combines the noble art of boxing with the ancient game of chess. Each bout is contested across eleven rounds, beginning with a round of chess, followed by a three minute round of boxing and so on. This is not a competition between boxer and grand chess master but between two contestants equally proficient in both fields. Sound good so far? My only questi...