City lad’s Rubik feat with feet cubes India’s pride

That’s what 20-year-old Adithyaa, an engineering student at the Madras Institute of Technology, has accomplished — solving a 3X3 cube in 32.45 seconds with his feet. 

In doing so, he has made the nation proud by winning the silver medal at the prestigious Asian Rubik’s Cube Championship in Taipei, Taiwan. The speedcuber, the reigning champion in India as well, broke his own National Record for the seventh time. He narrowly missed out on the first place by a mere half a second, and had to settle as the runner-up. 

But winning is nothing new for this prodigy, who has been the national champ since 2015, just two years after he picked up the activity/ sport. “The World Cube Association, a not-for-profit organisation, conducts speedcubing events all over the world. Last year, I competed at the World Championships in Paris and was placed sixth. It is held once in every two years with no age bar — 

so I’m all set to give it another shot soon,” says Adithyaa, who credits practice and patience for his ability to master the Rubik’s conundrum. 

Terming his dad MK Anand his ‘biggest supporter’, Adithyaa adds that the art of ‘cubing’ is a growing sport in India, with Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai producing several active competitors. 

“In fact, there were 12 Indians who participated in the Asian Championships in many of the 18 events.  There are also other categories like solving a cube with one hand, blindfolded, etc.” He has also been doing his bit to encourage the growth of the cubing community in the city by organising competitions at his college events and inviting cubers from across  the world to visit Chennai and participate in the contests.