Vidit Gujrathi Jokes About Magnus and Nepo's Title Sharing Trend

Recently, on New Year's Eve, chess Grandmasters Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi decided to share the title of the World Blitz Championship in New York, which has become a hot topic in the chess community. Recently, the Pongal celebrations held at the Chennai home of five-time world champion Viswanath Anand and his wife Aruna Anand were filled with much fun.

Anand and Aruna also hosted many of India's top Grandmasters like Gukesh Dommaraju, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, Vaishali, RB Ramesh and Srinath Narayanan besides Vidit Gujrathi and his fiancée Nidhi. Quite a few ceremonies were held, especially for the soon-to-be-married Vidit Gujrathi.  

During a ritual ceremony, Vidit Gujrati and his fiancée had to take out a piece of chess from a pot of milk. When the score was 1-1, Aruna cracked a joke which made Vishy Anand and others laugh. "Anand, he is saying they are sharing the title.' The remarks were in reference to Magnus Carlsen and Ian Nepomniachtchi, who have shared the 2024 World Blitz Chess Championship.

After Aruna's comment, Vidit Gujrathi smiled and said, "Sharing titles is a trend now. In response, Anand said, "When 'Armageddon' happens between married couples, it does not end well.

Magnus Carlsen has been heavily criticised for the incident, especially since a video of him has surfaced in which he is seen jokingly telling Nepomniachtchi that if FIDE rejects their decision to share the title, they could just play small draws until they give up.