The Chess Players (film)

Plot

Historical background

The film is set in 1856 on the eve of the Indian Rebellion of 1857. The British are about to annex the Oudh State (also spelled Awadh). The daily life of two wealthy men who are devoted to chess is presented against the background of scheming officials of the British East India Company, the history of its relations with the Indian ruler of Awadh, and the ruler's devotion both to his religious practice and the pursuit of pleasure.

Summary

The film shows in parallel the historical drama of the Indian princely state of Awadh (whose capital is Lucknow) and its Nawab, Wajid Ali Shah who is overthrown by the British, alongside the story of two noblemen who are obsessed with shatranj, i.e. chess.

Wajid Ali Shah, the ruling Nawab of Awadh, is a languid artist and poet, no longer in command of events and unable to effectively oppose the British demand for his throne. Parallel to this wider drama is the personal (and humorous) tale of two rich, indolent noblemen of this kingdom, Mirza Sajjad Ali and Mir Roshan Ali. Inseparable friends, the two nobles are passionately obsessed with the game of shatranj (chess). Both effectively neglect their wives and fail to fight the takeover of their kingdom by the East India Company. Instead, they escape their harangued wives and responsibilities, fleeing from Lucknow to play chess in a tiny village untouched by greater events. Ray's basic theme in the film is the message that the self-centredness, detachment and cowardice of India's ruling classes catalysed the annexation of Awadh by a handful of British officials, among whom Captain Weston, a British soldier in love with Urdu poetry, is also worth noting.

In the last scene, after which Mir shoots at Mirza and complains out loud "(If you die) I won't have a partner to play chess with", Mirza responds to him "but you have one in front of you!" (thus making him understand that he forgives him). He finally concludes that "after nightfall, we will go back home. We both need darkness to hide our faces."

Cast

• Sanjeev Kumar as Mirza Sajjad Ali
• Saeed Jaffrey as Mir Roshan Ali
• Shabana Azmi as Khurshid, Mirza's wife
• Richard Attenborough as General James Outram
• Farida Jalal as Nafisa, Mir's wife
• Amjad Khan as Wajid Ali Shah
• David Abraham as Munshi Nandlal
• Victor Banerjee as Prime Minister ("Madar-ud-Daula")
• Veena as the Queen, Mother of Wajid Ali Shah.
• Farooq Sheikh as Aqueel
• Tom Alter as Captain Weston, Outram's aide de camp
• Leela Mishra as Hirya, Khurshid's maid
• Saswati Sen as Kathak dancer in the song 'Kanha main tose haari'
• Samarth Narain as Kallu
• Bhudo Advani as Abbajani
• Agha as Chuttan Miyan – Abbajani's attendant – (Uncredited)
• Barry John
• Kamu Mukherjee
• Amitabh Bachchan as Narrator

Production

The Chess Players employed stars of the Bombay cinema (Sanjeev Kumar, Amjad Khan, Shabana Azmi and Amitabh Bachchan as a narrator) together with British actors (such as Sir Richard Attenborough).

The production of the film included studio shootings at Indrapuri Studio in Kolkata, where the sets were designed by art director Bansi Chandragupta. Indrapuri Studio was indeed used to recreate Lucknow for the film.There were location shoots near Lucknow, including in a village close to the city, for outdoor scenes.

Reception

The film was well received upon its release. Despite the film's limited budget, The Washington Post critic Gary Arnold gave it a positive review; "He [Ray] possesses what many overindulged Hollywood filmmakers often lack: a view of history". According to Martin Scorsese, "This film deals with a moment of incredible change in Indian history and is told from a comical view that is a hallmark of Ray’s work. Watching it again, I realize this is what it must really feel like to live through a moment of historic change. It feels this big and tragic at the same time."

Awards and nominations

Preservation

The Chess Players was preserved by the Academy Film Archive in 2010.

References

References

1. Aseem Chhabra. (15 August 2017). "There was always a huge calm on the set". The Hindu.
2. (28 July 2017). "Working with Satyajit Ray Was One of the Joys of Producing Shatranj Ke Khiladi". The Wire.
3. "Shatranj Ke Khilari (The Chess Players)". Satyajit Ray official site.
4. Margaret Herrick Library, Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
5. Devapriya Sanyal. (3 October 2017). "The Soumendu Roy-Satyajit Ray teamwork that produced some of our greatest films". Scroll.
6. (29 September 2025). "Madan Studio/Indrapuri Studio". Bengal film Archive.
7. "When Amjad Khan, Attenborough, Sanjeev Kumar got together".
8. Arnold, Gary. (6 April 1978). "The Chess Players". [[The Washington Post]].
9. Sharf, Zack. (2021-03-25). "Martin Scorsese's Favorite Movies: 40 Films the Director Wants You to See".
10. "Preserved Projects".