New Delhi: In this digital age, when every gesture is scrutinized under the microscopic lens of social media, a brief exchange at the recently concluded Glencoe Freestyle Open snowballed into a massive social media debate.When Indian GM Harika Dronavalli extended her hand to Uzbekistan GM Nodirbek Yakubboev to withdraw from the competition, the latter responded with a polite, clasped-hand “Namaste” instead of a traditional handshake.
The video went viral almost immediately upon being posted to social media, prompting both cultural praise and sharp criticism of Yakuboyev’s “rejection” of a handshake.However, Harika has now come out to clarify, expressing disappointment at the way the young Uzbek player has been treated by the digital court of opinion.In an exclusive interview with TOI, Harika was quick to refute any suggestion of malice or disrespect and revealed that the exchange was much more coordinated than what appeared on screen.“I was surprised to see these videos and people blaming him for it because I felt so bad. Especially before the game, he came up to me and said, ‘I can’t shake my hand.'” I said, totally fine. I mean, I understand,” Harika said.The chaos the crowd witnessed at the end of the game was not the result of Yakuboyev’s indifference, but a byproduct of Harika’s own decades of professional habits.The Indian legend has been playing at the highest level for over 26 years and the gesture of extending his hand at the end of the match was an involuntary reflex.“After all these years, when I resigned, my hands just instinctively unclenched. And then when he said Namaste, I realized. I said sorry, just out of habit. Unfortunately, that’s the same board that put this camera on us and somehow it spread in a different way and I never want anyone to be blamed for something he didn’t do,” the 35-year-old general manager said.‘He never did anything wrong’: HarikaFor the 24-year-old Yakuboyev, this isn’t the first time his religious beliefs have intersected with the strict rules of the chessboard. Last year, a similar incident happened with Vaishali Rameshbabu during the Tata Steel Challenge at Wijk Aan Zee, leading to major confusion and a subsequent apology.On that occasion, Yakuboyev presented flowers and chocolates to Vasiali on the sidelines and clarified that his refusal to touch women was due to his religious beliefs and not a lack of respect for his opponent.Harika, who was close to Vaishali, noted that neither of them was angry. She thinks it’s unfortunate that people’s perceptions of Yakuboyev contradict his true character.“He never insulted anyone, he never did anything wrong. He just informed. But when you only see actions, you miss the context and you might act the wrong way,” Harika added.Apart from the viral video, Harika’s performance in Germany was a milestone in Indian sports as she won the top women’s award and became the first Indian to qualify for the inaugural FIDE Women’s Freestyle Chess World Championship.However, she lamented that such spectacular moments often overshadow actual sporting achievements and expressed concern that unwanted attention could damage athletes’ mental health, especially when they have done nothing wrong.Also read: ‘Blanks’ and bold leaps – how Harika Dronavalli cracked freestyle chess on her debut“It’s sad to see something get more attention than chess. It could affect him mentally and it’s not even necessary. For me, I believe everyone is good and everyone is trying to do their best and has their own belief system. We just respect each other and try to play chess on the board,” she concluded.
