Checkmating History: Mariyum Fatima Becomes Bihar’s First Female Chess FIDE Master

By Syed Amjad Hussain, New Age Islam 20 September 2025 Marium Fatima, from Muzaffarpur, Bihar, has become the state’s first woman FIDE Master, breaking a long wait and inspiring young chess players with her remarkable journey and determination. Main Points: 1. Marium Fatima from Muzaffarpur has become Bihar’s first woman FIDE Master, ending a 40-year wait for the state to see such a milestone. 2. She has already secured norms for the Woman International Master title, signalling her rapid growth and potential in the world of chess. 3. Marium has triumphed at several national and international tournaments, including a strong showing at the Barcelona Chess Championship. 4. Her success reflects years of hard training, family encouragement and resilience despite limited resources in Bihar. 5. Marium’s journey has made her a role model for aspiring players, especially young girls, across Bihar and beyond. ----- Introduction On a warm morning of 18th September in Chennai, an 18-year-old girl quietly created history. When the World Chess Federation (FIDE) published its latest list of titled players, one name stood out: Mariyum Fatima, Bihar’s first ever woman to be recognised as a FIDE Master. At home, Mariyum celebrated with her family over a simple meal. Yet in chess circles from Patna to Chennai, people were already calling it a breakthrough for the state, and for Indian women’s chess. A Childhood With a Chessboard for a Playground Marium grew up in a modest home in Muzaffarpur, Bihar. Chess entered her life through her family, a board at the dining table, games in the evenings, local tournaments on weekends. There were no big coaching academies nearby, no international masters dropping in for simultaneous exhibitions. What she had instead was curiosity, a mobile phone, and the patience to study moves late into the night. By the time she was nine she was a fixture at district events, often the only girl in the top boards. Her parents became her first managers, arranging train journeys, accommodation and school leave so she could play in tournaments far from home. “It was never easy,” one of her local coaches told a Hindi daily. “But she never complained – she just kept playing.” Breakthrough on Foreign Soil The turning point came last year when Mariyum began travelling outside Bihar for stronger tournaments. She performed well in the Goa Open and the Chennai Grandmaster event. Then, in the summer of 2025, she entered the B-Group at the Barcelona Open in Spain. Against a field of international players she scored a staggering 7½ points out of 8, seven wins and one draw. That single result catapulted her rating and secured the final requirement for the Woman FIDE Master title. Why This Title Matters In chess, titles are hard-earned badges of respect. Woman FIDE Master is the first rung of the international ladder, above which lie Woman International Master and Woman Grandmaster. Achieving WFM means you have crossed the 2100-rating mark and performed at a consistently high level against titled opposition. For a girl from Muzaffarpur, with no elite training infrastructure, this is akin to scaling a peak without a paved path. A First for Bihar, and a Beacon for Others Newspapers across Bihar, splashed her story across their pages. They pointed out that no woman from the state had achieved an international title in four decades. Senior players called it “the beginning of a new era.” Already, coaches in Patna say more girls are turning up at local chess clubs, inspired by her story. The Road Behind the Headlines Behind the headlines are years of sacrifice. With limited funds, Marium relied on online coaching and self-study. Her family bore the cost of travel and entry fees. Small grants like the Bijay Rajani Scholarship from HelpChess helped her make ends meet, but there is still no steady sponsor. Her parents often had to choose which tournament she could afford to play. Part of a Larger Movement Maryam’s rise mirrors a broader transformation in Indian chess. Over the past two decades women like Koneru Humpy, Harika Dronavalli, R. Vaishali and Divya Deshmukh have shown that Indian women can beat the best in the world. Yet most of them come from states with rich chess traditions. Marium is proof that the talent pool is wider than the traditional hubs. Looking Ahead, The Dream of WIM and WGM Winning WFM has not slowed her down. She has told regional newspapers that she now aims to become a Woman International Master and eventually a Woman Grandmaster. That will mean travelling more, facing stronger opponents, and keeping her studies on track – she has taken the Arts stream in school to allow more time for chess. “It’s just the start,” she told one Hindi portal. “There’s so much more to learn.” More Than a Title For Bihar, Mariyum Fatima is more than a new name on a FIDE list. She represents what can happen when talent meets persistence even in the absence of resources. She is a role model for every young girl who wants to compete but thinks the odds are stacked too high. Her journey from a small town in North Bihar to international recognition is a reminder that excellence can emerge from anywhere, provided someone is willing to sit for hours over a board, studying lines and patterns, while the world around them looks the other way. And for Mariyam herself, this is just move number one in a much longer game. ----- Syed Amjad Hussain is an author and Independent research scholar on Sufism and Islam. He is the author of 'Bihar Aur Sufivad', a bestselling research book based on the history of Sufism in Bihar. URL: https://www.newageislam.com/current-affairs/mariyum-fatima-bihar-female-chess-fide-master/d/136911 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism