Arun developed a love for chess over the years and founded the University of Canterbury Chess Club (UChess) in 2014. He is a licensed National Instructor (NI) accredited by World Chess Federation (FIDE) and is an active member of the Canterbury Chess Club. 

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His passion for the game was re-ignited after the chance encounter with Magnus Carlsen in Copenhagen, Denmark while walking down a crowded street and extended to volunteering at the 44th Chess Olympiad in his hometown Chennai, India in 2022. 

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His travels around the world have given him an appreciation of the value of chess in breaking down barriers and his education up to PhD level an insight into the usefulness of chess as a tool to promote student success and well-being.