Shehzad Roy plays chess with ‘Queen of the Mountains’ Malala Yousafzai

Renowned singer and social activist Shehzad Roy recently shared a glimpse of his meeting with Nobel laureate Malala Yousafzai, posting a picture of their chess match on Instagram.

Recalling the experience, Shehzad Roy revealed that he spent the day with Malala and her family—including her father, Ziauddin Yousafzai, mother, Tor Pekai, and husband, Asser Malik—at their native village, Barkana Shapur, in Shangla District.

The singer captioned his post with a reference to the popular chess move, writing, “I played the Queen’s Gambit with the Queen of the Mountains, Malala.”

Shehzad Roy also took this opportunity to highlight the power of education, mentioning Zindagi Trust student Mehak Maqbool, who recently became the Under-18 National Chess Champion.

He emphasised, "This proves that when given the opportunity, our girls can compete and win. Quality education is the real game changer."

Roy asserted that education creates champions, breaks barriers, and transforms dreams into reality. "When obstacles in the way of education are removed, names like Malala and Mehak shine through," he added.