Did I hear someone say its just a movie! Well, not so many inspirational movies of its stature have been made based on simple Ugandan personalities like the chess prodigy Phiona Mutesi. This movie has taken Uganda and specifically the slummy Katwe to Hollywood; it’s a big deal if you asked us.
Well, our sources in Hollywood told us that Robert Katende, the man that started Phiona’s journey to international stardom by teaching her and other children how to play chess is spearheading a fundraising drive in the US to have a permanent centre in Katwe.
According to a source, Katende and a team that includes Phiona Mutesi are lobbying for fundraising to purchase land in Katwe and construct a centre to be named Queen of Katwe, which will be used to teach chess to more children.
We hope to hear from Katende when he returns to Kampala ahead of the official Queen of Katwe movie premiere this weekend.