On Diwali, 22-year-old Anuj Shrivatri won the ASEAN+ Open Chess Championship in the Philippines and became India’s 100th Grandmaster. This sparked celebrations from Prime Minister Narendra Modi to five-time world champion Viswanathan Anand , who hailed the milestone as a reflection of India’s growing chess prowess.
From one Grandmaster to a hundred, the nation’s journey in chess has reached a historic landmark. Let’s take a closer look at the lesser-known facts, fascinating numbers and stories behind India’s rise as a global chess powerhouse. How India’s journey began…
Anand remained the country’s only Grandmaster for three years before Dibyendu Barua became the second in 1991. The numbers gathered momentum over the following decades, with the country reaching 32 GMs by 2013 and its 50th in 2017. The next 50 arrived in less than nine years, with 10 Indian players reaching the milestone in 2026 alone. He earned his IM title in 2020, six years before becoming a Grandmaster.
The milestone is particularly significant (including the fact that Anuj is the first Grandmaster from Madhya Pradesh) considering how slowly India’s Grandmaster journey began. By the turn of the millennium, India had produced only three Grandmasters. Vishy’s celebration! Anand, who laid the foundation for India’s Grandmaster journey, made his feelings known about the achievement on X. He completed a BTech in AI and Machine Learning at Lovely Professional University and worked for a German software company before leaving his job to concentrate on chess.
A cracker of a 100. Funnily only today I was thinking December 2027 will be the 40th anniversary of my GM title and literally this manifested…. Speaking about the milestone, India’s 10th Grandmaster and Chennai-based chess coach RB Ramesh states, “A 100 Grandmasters is an amazing achievement. A 22-year-old from Katni, Madhya Pradesh. He began playing chess in 2011, introduced to the game by his father, who enjoyed chess during his college days. Tamil Nadu’s 38 Grandmasters account for approximately 39% of India’s 97 registered GMs. This is more than the next three states – Maharashtra, West Bengal and Delhi – combined (33). Indian chess by the numbers: 100 – Indian Grand Masters 38 – Years since first GM 74 – Active Grand Masters 10 – New Grand Masters in 2026 38 – GMs from Tamil Nadu 14 – States & UTs represented Countries that have the most Grandmasters Country GM Active GM Russia 184 74 United States. 115 73 Germany 103 74 India 97* 74 Ukraine 85 51 India’s 100th milestone includes three newly earned titles awaiting formal inclusion in the November FIDE list: Anuj Shrivatri, Ethan Vaz and Rathanvel VS. India’s chess map State GM Tamil Nadu 38 Maharashtra 14 West Bengal 12 Delhi 7 Andhra Pradesh 5 Telangana 5 Karnataka 4 Kerala 3 Goa 2 Gujarat 2 India’s GM timeline Year Milestone 1988 Viswanathan Anand becomes India’s first GM 1991 Dibyendu Barua becomes the second 2000 India has only three GMs 2013 India reaches 32 GMs 2017 India reaches the halfway mark of 50 2026 India celebrates its 100th GM It took 29 years to go from the first Grandmaster to the 50th. The next 50 were produced in less than nine years.
He wrote, “Happy Diwali. Congrats to @AnujShrivatri on getting India to this milestone. However, he believes India should have more! “The biggest concern is the lack of an ecosystem to nurture players. Most Indian players achieve the title by travelling to Europe for tournaments, which involves considerable expense. With more tournaments and opportunities within India, we could have produced five times as many Grandmasters,” he adds. Join conversation Share your thoughts in the comments Be respectful · TOI community guidelines Who is Anuj Shrivatri? You use AI every day. Now get your AI Quotient. Take the AIQ test Get the latest Lifestyle News and more. Download the TOI app.