In the neighbourhood, chess is a popular pastime with men being the most visible players. In this backdrop a domestic worker, a young woman in love and a former journalist make their moves with care.

Chess is a popular pastime in this neighbourhood, with roadside games bringing together men, to challenge each other in friendly and sometimes unfriendly matches. But for some, the pawns include morality and religion causing tensions to erupt when a tournament gets underway. Against this backdrop, a domestic worker with a secret hobby, a former journalist struggling with married life and a young woman in love, find themselves pushing boundaries and challenging the rules of the game.

In the neighborhood, chess is a popular pastime with roadside games bringing together men from different strata. Their pawns include morality and religion, causing social and political tensions to erupt when a tournament gets underway. But the men are only the most visible players. Against this simmering backdrop, a domestic worker with a secret hobby, a young woman in love and a former journalist struggling with married life must make their moves with care. When caste, class, religion and gender come into play, there are boundaries to be negotiated, and the very rules of the game stand challenged.—Ektara Collective