Indian chess

Chess variant played in India

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Indian chess is the name given to regional variations of chess played in India in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is distinct from chaturanga. There are several such variations, all quite similar to modern rules, with variants regarding castling, pawn promotion, etc. These variants were popular in India until the 1960s. However, even today a mix of Indian and international rules and terminology are used in some parts of India.

Differences from Western chess

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The king cannot move unless at least one check has been given.
When only the kings and pawns are left in play, the opponent may not give check, but they can win by stalemate. Alternatively, giving check is allowed, but the capture of the last pawn (which would result in a draw) is disallowed.
The pawn's two-step initial move is absent in Indian chess; thus, the en passant capture is also absent.
Normal castling with rook and king is absent. The king can make a knight's move once in a game, known as Indian castling.
On reaching the opposite end of the board, a pawn is promoted to a piece of the type that began on that square. If it is promoted on the king's initial position, it is promoted a queen.
If there is one piece remaining other than the kings, it may not be captured. Alternatively, it may be captured unless it is a pawn.

Names of the pieces

The following table describes one version of Indian chess terminology for the various pieces (including Hindi and Urdu pronunciations; orange indicates most common terminology in Hindi, green indicates that in Urdu):^[1]^[2]

Standard chess piece	Indian chess piece
Standard chess piece	English	Hindi	Urdu	ISO 15919	Other	Telugu	Malayalam	Tamil
king	king	राजा	راجا	rājā		రాజు	രാജാവ്	ராஜா
king	king	बादशाह	بادشاہ	bādśāh		రాజు	രാജാവ്	ராஜா
queen	ferz/minister	मन्त्री	منتری	mantrī		మంత్రి	മന്ത്രി
	ferz/minister	वज़ीर	وزیر	vazīr		మంత్రి	മന്ത്രി
	queen	रानी	رانی	rānī				ராணி / அரசி
	queen	मलिका	ملکہ	malikā				ராணி / அரசி
	general	सेनापति	سیناپتی	sēnāpati
rook	rook/chariot	रथ	رتھ	rath			തേര്
	rook/chariot	रुख़	رخ	rux	rukkha^[3]		തേര്
	castle	क़िला	قلعہ	qilā				கோட்டை
	elephant	हाथी	ہاتھی	hāthī	hattī^[4]	ఏనుగు		யானை
knight	horse	घोड़ा	گھوڑا	ghōṛā		గుర్రం	കുതിര	குதிரை
bishop	alfil/elephant	फ़ियला	فیلہ	fiyalā/fīlā			ആന
	camel	ऊँट	اونٹ	ū̃ṭ
	chariot					శకటు
	minister							அமைச்சர்
pawn	infantryman	पैदल	پیدل	paidal			കാലാള്‍ / പടയാളി	காலாள்
	infantryman	प्यादा	پیادہ	pyādā			കാലാള്‍ / പടയാളി	காலாள்
	soldier	सैनिक	سینک	sainik		బంటు		சிப்பாய்
	soldier	सिपाही	سپاہی	sipāhī		బంటు		சிப்பாய்

References

^ Cazaux, Jean-Louis. "Indian Chess Sets". Another view on Chess: Odyssey of Chess. Archived from the original on 6 November 2020. Retrieved 25 November 2014.
^ "MCW নতুন লগইন বোনাস Bangladesh". Retrieved 17 August 2023.
^ Punjabi
^ Marathi