Too young! Too soon! Queen of Katwe chooses the place ‘she belonged’

Nikita Waligwa, the teenager who came into limelight after playing the lead role in the biopic film ‘Queen of Katwe’ passed away at a tender age of 15 years. In her farewell message, the director of the film Mira Nair said – the pioneers and the Kool Kats of Katwe will always miss you, your light lives on in.

This is farewell nobody wanted to give. She silently descended in the memories of her fans and suddenly vanished forever.

We will miss you, Nikita! These are only the words her fans could utter on her demise at a tender age of 15 years. As she marched towards her final destination, farewell messages started emanating from Uganda, America, Europe, Africa, Asia, Hollywood, Bollywood, Nollywood, artists, professionals, and fans from throughout the world.

Though her real name was Nikita Pearl Waligwa, she was popular as ‘Gloria’ the name of the character she played in the film and the ‘Queen of Katwe’, the name given to her after the film. Nature allowed her to do only one film but she made such a strong impression of her acting in the film that she became many times more popular than Phiona Mutesi (Born in 1996), the Chess Olympiad of Uganda whose life was portrayed in the biopic. It was due to her fabulous role, the film received 12 international awards including the best actress award, best child actress award and many more. This Disney film ‘Queen of Katwe’ made her a celebrity by the next morning.

“Sometimes the place you are used to is not the place you belong to. You belong where you believe you belong,” said Gloria’s coach in a scene in the film. The dialogue has become a word of inspiration among her fans.

However, her personal life was a tragedy. She died on Saturday late night at TMR International Hospital in Naalya, Kampala following a long battle with brain cancer. This was the second time she caught up with a brain tumor. In the earlier case, she was operated and declared all clear in 2017 but was again diagnosed with a tumor in 2019. “Fare thee well Nikita Pearl Waligwa. You were a darling to many and we have lost you to a brain tumor at such a tender age. Nikita was in class 3. Rest in perfect peace dear,” said Gayaza High School on Twitter. "She was darling to everyone and everybody will miss her. No words can explain the pain at the moment,” it added. 

The movie - Queen of Katwe – was based on the life of a local chess player Phiona Mutesi. Before becoming a chess Olympiad, she grew in very adverse situations in Katwe, which is the largest eight slums of Uganda.  The movie depicts her ordeal and commitment to her dreams. “Farewell dearest Nikita. The heart breaks to see you gone, too young, too soon. You were such a fighter, but this disease was incurable. The pioneers and the Kool Kats of Katwe will always miss you, your light lives on in,” said Mira Nair, Director of the film ‘Queen of Katwe’.

In such a short period, she was the inspiration for millions of girls in the African continent. She became the face of struggle, strength for girls, a queen of hopes in the dreams and real-life of African girls. Even after she had departed for the finally chosen place, she will remain a role model for girls in Africa.

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