MADURAI: The right index finger of H Asvika is no stranger to the smooth, powdered carrom board. The crowd at Sri Kaliswari College in Virudhunagar district watch as the 16-year-old girl breaks through the coins, in a resounding crack. With deft strategic moves, all her pieces from the 74cm x 74cm arena are pocketed. She brings to the board six years of gruelling training and a lucky practice striker — painted with two ebony elephants — that ensures her competitor’s defeat.
This is the 62nd Tamil Nadu State Junior and Youth Carrom Championship in the district held from December 22-24, 2021. As expected, the girl from Madurai city marches through the ranks, bagging first place. The latest State accolade is not new to the Class 12 Accountancy student as she already has various trophies to her name.
At the age of 11, Asvika was drawn to the game of carrom as she carefully observed the striking skills of her relative, Amsavarthini. Soon, the duo began battling it out on the board. Her mother H Nithya (41), explains that Asvika, then, began professionally mastering the game with the help of S Raja (39), a coach at the Raja Win Carrom Club in Madurai. According to Raja, eventhough Asvika could rule the board with her break and rebound shots, she was not sent for tournaments during the first one-and-a-half years of training. The coach believed her talent could blaze in bigger leagues. So, instead of the district or local tournaments, Asvika’s first game was at the daunting State-level.
Within three subsequent tournaments, she emerged as the winner. “She is a hard worker and approaches the games with concentration — the mantra for success,” he explained. Asvika enters competitions equipped with precision and that same lucky striker, given by Raja.
While her journey on the board was smooth-sailing, there proved to be a few road bumps in the academic arena. The youngster initially studied at a Matriculation school in the city but soon, obtaining leaves for carrom tournaments became a difficult task. The school often denied her permission for leaves for competitions. The last straw was when Asvika missed four exams in a row, choosing the striker over her pen.
“She even wanted to opt-out of school to pursue her dream and continue playing the game. As her parents, we stood by her side,” added Nithya. The carrom queen moved to Kasthuribai Gandhi Corporation Girls Higher Secondary School where she currently studies Accountancy.
Despite getting admission to the science stream through the sports quota, she chose Accountancy to aid her passion to win in carrom, said S Hariharan (45), Asvika’s father, who works in a jewellery shop. Asvika’s dreams are clear-cut, always chasing the red queen on carrom boards.
While the champion has defeated hundreds of opponents — and continues to do so — her brother Kavin Sandrom (14) remains a surprising contender. Kavin, much like Asvika, has a knack for board games and is shaping up to be a strong player. Her passion for the game is infectious: “After I became devoted to the game, Kavin also started playing with me,” Asvika says. Meanwhile, Kavin points out that his sister is his role model in life, especially in the art of playing the game.