Key Highlights:
- India has 93 officially confirmed chess Grandmasters as of early 2026, with a 94th title pending formal ratification by FIDE.
- Viswanathan Anand became India's first Grandmaster in 1988. Today, players like Gukesh D, Arjun Erigaisi, and Praggnanandhaa rank among the world's best.
- Tamil Nadu leads all Indian states with 35 Grandmasters, followed by Maharashtra (14) and West Bengal (11).
India went from having just one Grandmaster in 1988 to nearly 100 by 2026. That is not a small jump. It is one of the greatest transformations in the history of chess. This page gives you the complete list of every Indian chess Grandmaster, with details on when they earned the title, where they are from, and what makes them special. It is updated for 2026 and will continue to be updated as new titles are confirmed. Whether you are a parent, a student, or just a chess fan, this is the only reference you will need.
How Does a Player Become a Chess Grandmaster?
To earn the FIDE Grandmaster (GM) title, a player must do two things:
- Reach a FIDE rating of at least 2500.
- Earn three GM norms. A norm is earned by performing at a rating level of 2600 or higher in a qualified international tournament.
That's it on paper. But in practice, it takes years of intense study, dozens of international tournaments, and thousands of hours of preparation with strong chess engines.
The Complete List of Indian Chess Grandmasters (All 93)
# | Name | Year | State | Peak Rating | Notable Achievement |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Viswanathan Anand | 1988 | Tamil Nadu | 2817 | 15th World Champion; India's first GM |
2 | Dibyendu Barua | 1991 | West Bengal | 2561 | India's 2nd GM; East India pioneer |
3 | Praveen Thipsay | 1997 | Maharashtra | - | First GM from Maharashtra |
4 | Abhijit Kunte | 2000 | Maharashtra | - | National circuit dominant force |
5 | Krishnan Sasikiran | 2000 | Tamil Nadu | 2720 | Former Asian Champion |
6 | Pentala Harikrishna | 2001 | Andhra Pradesh | 2732 | Former World Junior Champion; former top 10 |
7 | Koneru Humpy | 2002 | Andhra Pradesh | 2623 | First Indian woman to earn open GM title; World Rapid Champion |
8 | Surya Shekhar Ganguly | 2003 | West Bengal | - | Six-time Indian National Champion |
9 | Sandipan Chanda | 2003 | West Bengal | - | Second to Anand in World Championship matches |
10 | Ramachandran Ramesh | 2004 | Tamil Nadu | - | Dronacharya Award-winning coach |
11 | Tejas Bakre | 2004 | Gujarat | - | First GM from Gujarat |
12 | Magesh Chandran Panchanathan | 2006 | Tamil Nadu | 2439 | Top collegiate competitor in USA |
13 | J. Deepan Chakkravarthy | 2006 | Tamil Nadu | - | Regular national championship contender |
14 | Neelotpal Das | 2006 | West Bengal | - | Core contributor to Bengal chess |
15 | Parimarjan Negi | 2006 | Delhi | 2639 | GM at 13; later joined MIT/Stanford research |
16 | Geetha Narayanan Gopal | 2007 | Kerala | - | First GM from Kerala |
17 | Abhijeet Gupta | 2008 | Delhi | 2612 | 2008 World Junior Champion |
18 | Subramanian Arun Prasad | 2008 | Tamil Nadu | - | Prominent coach and open tournament player |
19 | Sundararajan Kidambi | 2009 | Tamil Nadu | - | Known for deep opening preparation |
20 | R. R. Laxman | 2009 | Tamil Nadu | - | Known for aggressive, attacking play |
21 | Sriram Jha | 2010 | Delhi | - | Key figure in North India chess growth |
22 | Deep Sengupta | 2010 | West Bengal | 2480 | Former World Youth Champion (U-12) |
23 | Baskaran Adhiban | 2010 | Tamil Nadu | - | Nicknamed "The Beast" for unorthodox play |
24 | S. P. Sethuraman | 2011 | Tamil Nadu | 2642 | Former National Champion; Olympiad team member |
25 | Harika Dronavalli | 2011 | Andhra Pradesh | 2488 | Multiple Women's World Championship Bronze medals |
26 | M. R. Lalith Babu | 2012 | Andhra Pradesh | - | Commonwealth Chess Champion |
27 | Vaibhav Suri | 2012 | Delhi | 2569 | Strong national competitor |
28 | M. R. Venkatesh | 2012 | Tamil Nadu | - | Open tournament specialist with long career |
29 | Sahaj Grover | 2012 | Delhi | - | World Youth Champion (U-10) |
30 | Vidit Gujrathi | 2013 | Maharashtra | 2747 | 2024 Candidates participant; crossed 2700 |
31 | M. Shyam Sundar | 2013 | Tamil Nadu | - | Elite coach; trained multiple recent prodigies |
32 | Akshayraj Kore | 2013 | Maharashtra | - | Active in North American circuit |
33 | V. Vishnu Prasanna | 2013 | Tamil Nadu | - | Primary coach of World Champion Gukesh D |
34 | Debashis Das | 2013 | Odisha | - | First GM from Odisha |
35 | Saptarshi Roy Chowdhury | 2013 | West Bengal | - | Long-standing Bengal chess fixture |
36 | Ankit Rajpara | 2014 | Gujarat | - | Second GM from Gujarat |
37 | Chithambaram Aravindh | 2014 | Tamil Nadu | 2749 | Reached World No. 11; multiple National Champion |
38 | Karthikeyan Murali | 2015 | Tamil Nadu | 2669 | Two-time consecutive National Champion |
39 | Ashwin Jayaram | 2015 | Tamil Nadu | - | Competes in both classical and rapid events |
40 | Swapnil Dhopade | 2015 | Maharashtra | - | Transitioned into a successful coach |
41 | S. L. Narayanan | 2015 | Kerala | 2620 | Elite tournament competitor |
42 | Shardul Gagare | 2016 | Maharashtra | 2439 | Strong national competitor |
43 | Diptayan Ghosh | 2016 | West Bengal | - | Top-tier East Indian competitor |
44 | Priyadharshan Kannappan | 2016 | Tamil Nadu | - | Known for coaching and chess literature |
45 | Aryan Chopra | 2016 | Delhi | - | Earned GM title at 14 years and 9 months |
46 | Srinath Narayanan | 2017 | Tamil Nadu | - | World-class coach; national team captain |
47 | Himanshu Sharma | 2017 | Haryana | - | First GM from Haryana |
48 | Anurag Mhamal | 2017 | Goa | - | First GM from Goa |
49 | Abhimanyu Puranik | 2017 | Maharashtra | 2652 | Consistent 2600+ player on European circuit |
50 | M. S. Thejkumar | 2017 | Karnataka | - | Anchor for Karnataka's chess development |
51 | Saptarshi Roy | 2018 | West Bengal | - | Contributor to Bengal chess heritage |
52 | Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu | 2018 | Tamil Nadu | 2785 | 2023 World Cup finalist; Olympiad Gold medalist |
53 | Nihal Sarin | 2018 | Kerala | 2723 | Blitz and Rapid prodigy; Global Chess League standout |
54 | Arjun Erigaisi | 2018 | Telangana | 2801 | Crossed 2800 ELO; contender for World No. 1 |
55 | Karthik Venkataraman | 2018 | Andhra Pradesh | 2594 | Indian National Champion 2022 |
56 | Harsha Bharathakoti | 2018 | Andhra Pradesh | - | Highly tactical Asian circuit player |
57 | P. Karthikeyan | 2018 | Tamil Nadu | - | Solidified Tamil Nadu's deep roster |
58 | Stany G.A. | 2018 | Karnataka | 2429 | European open circuit competitor |
59 | N. R. Visakh | 2019 | Tamil Nadu | - | Part of India's first sibling GM duo |
60 | Gukesh Dommaraju | 2019 | Tamil Nadu | 2794 | Youngest Undisputed World Chess Champion ever (age 18) |
61 | P. Iniyan | 2019 | Tamil Nadu | 2514 | Indian National Champion 2025 |
62 | Swayams Mishra | 2019 | Odisha | 2446 | Odisha's second GM |
63 | Girish A. Koushik | 2019 | Karnataka | - | Multi-time state champion in rapid chess |
64 | Prithu Gupta | 2019 | Delhi | - | Reached GM title at age 15 |
65 | Raunak Sadhwani | 2019 | Maharashtra | 2660 | Crossed 2650; active in rapid online events |
66 | G. Akash | 2020 | Tamil Nadu | 2495 | Reached GM status during pandemic constraints |
67 | Leon Luke Mendonca | 2021 | Goa | 2615 | Stayed in Europe during COVID lockdown to complete the title |
68 | Arjun Kalyan | 2021 | Tamil Nadu | 2516 | Balances academics with strong results |
69 | Harshit Raja | 2021 | Maharashtra | - | Final norm at Biel Chess Festival |
70 | Raja Rithvik R. | 2021 | Telangana | - | FIDE and AICF support camp product |
71 | Sankalp Gupta | 2021 | Maharashtra | 2552 | Earned norms across back-to-back tournaments |
72 | Mitrabha Guha | 2021 | West Bengal | - | Modern playstyle reviving Bengal chess |
73 | Bharath Subramaniyam | 2022 | Tamil Nadu | 2595 | Vergani Cup, Italy (sparked post-pandemic boom) |
74 | Rahul Srivatshav P | 2022 | Telangana | 2500+ | Cattolica Chess Festival after holding 5 norms |
75 | Pranav V | 2022 | Tamil Nadu | 2657 | Reigning FIDE Junior World Champion |
76 | Pranav Anand | 2022 | Karnataka | 2500+ | World Youth U-16 Champion |
77 | Aditya Mittal | 2022 | Maharashtra | 2624 | El Llobregat Open, Spain |
78 | Koustav Chatterjee | 2023 | West Bengal | 2548 | Balanced board exams with rapid GM ascension |
79 | Pranesh M | 2023 | Tamil Nadu | 2633 | Rilton Cup, Stockholm |
80 | Vignesh N. R. | 2023 | Tamil Nadu | 2542 | NordWest Cup; sibling GM duo with Visakh |
81 | Sayantan Das | 2023 | West Bengal | 2516 | Cannes Open; waited 5.5 years to cross 2500 |
82 | Prraneeth Vuppala | 2023 | Telangana | 2523 | Baku Open, Azerbaijan |
83 | Aditya Samant | 2023 | Maharashtra | 2535 | Biel Master Tournament, Switzerland |
84 | Vaishali Rameshbabu | 2024 | Tamil Nadu | 2506 | Grand Swiss Winner; first brother-sister GM duo with Pragg |
85 | Shyaam Nikhil P. | 2024 | Tamil Nadu | 2502 | Waited 12 years to complete title technicalities |
86 | Srihari L R | 2025 | Tamil Nadu | 2503 | Asian Individual Championship, UAE |
87 | Harikrishnan A Ra | 2025 | Tamil Nadu | 2536 | La Plagne Festival, France |
88 | Divya Deshmukh | 2025 | Maharashtra | 2510 | Won FIDE Women's World Cup directly |
89 | Rohith Krishna S | 2025 | Tamil Nadu | 2516 | Almaty Masters, Kazakhstan |
90 | Ilamparthi AR | 2025 | Tamil Nadu | 2525 | Bijeljina Open, Bosnia |
91 | V. S. Raahul | 2025 | Tamil Nadu | 2500+ | ASEAN Championship direct title |
92 | Aaryan Varshney | 2026 | Delhi | 2513 | Andranik Margaryan Memorial, Armenia |
93 | Aarav Dengla | 2026 | Maharashtra | 2506 | GM Mix Bijeljina, Bosnia (age 17) |
Note: IM Mayank Chakraborty from Assam has also secured final GM norms in 2026. His title is pending formal FIDE ratification, which would make him India's 94th GM.
How Many Grandmasters Does India Have?
India has 93 confirmed Grandmasters as of early 2026. A 94th is pending FIDE ratification. Here is how that number grew over the decades:
Decade | New GMs Added | Running Total |
|---|---|---|
1980s | 1 | 1 |
1990s | 2 | 3 |
2000s | 17 | 20 |
2010s | 44 | 64 |
2020s (to early 2026) | 29+ | 93+ |
The 2010s were the real turning point. Chess engines like Stockfish became free and widely available. Young players in Chennai, Mumbai, and Delhi could now study at the level of European grandmasters without leaving home. The All India Chess Federation (AICF) also expanded India's domestic tournament calendar, making it easier to build ratings without expensive international travel.
India's First Chess Grandmasters
Viswanathan Anand became India's first Grandmaster in 1988. He went on to become the 15th Undisputed World Chess Champion, holding that title from 2007 to 2013. His peak FIDE rating of 2817 stood as India's highest for 37 years. Anand did not just win titles. He changed what Indian kids believed was possible. Families that had never heard of chess started enrolling their children in chess classes. That ripple effect is still being felt today. On the women's side, Subbaraman Vijayalakshmi became the first Indian to earn the Woman Grandmaster (WGM) title in 2001. But the bigger milestone came in 2002. Koneru Humpy, at just 15 years and 1 month old, became the first Indian woman to earn the full open Grandmaster title. At the time, she was also the youngest female in the world to achieve it. She had to compete in male-dominated open tournaments to earn her norms. That took real courage and real strength.
The 10 Youngest Indian Grandmasters
India's youngest GMs are a separate story altogether. The ages at which these players earned the title would have seemed impossible two decades ago.
Rank | Player Name | Age at GM Title |
|---|---|---|
1 | Gukesh Dommaraju | 12 years, 7 months, 17 days |
2 | Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu | 12 years, 10 months, 13 days |
3 | Parimarjan Negi | 13 years, 4 months, 22 days |
4 | Raunak Sadhwani | 13 years, 9 months, 28 days |
5 | Nihal Sarin | 14 years, 1 month, 1 day |
6 | Bharath Subramaniyam | 14 years, 2 months, 23 days |
7 | Aryan Chopra | 14 years, 9 months, 3 days |
8 | Leon Luke Mendonca | 14 years, 9 months, 17 days |
9 | Arjun Erigaisi | 14 years, 11 months, 13 days |
10 | Pranav Anand | 15 years, 10 months |
Gukesh missed the all-time world record (held by Russia's Sergey Karjakin) by just 17 days. He drew a must-win game at the Sunway Sitges festival in Spain. But he came back stronger. At 18, he became the youngest Undisputed World Chess Champion in history by defeating Ding Liren in 2024. The story of R Praggnanandhaa is equally remarkable. He reached the World Cup final in 2023 and competed in the Candidates tournament in 2024. These are not just young title holders. They are genuine world-class players.
Which State Has Produced the Most Grandmasters?
The numbers are very unequal across India.
State | Number of GMs |
|---|---|
Tamil Nadu | 35 |
Maharashtra | 14 |
West Bengal | 11 |
Delhi | 8 |
Andhra Pradesh | 7 |
Karnataka | 5 |
Telangana | 3 |
Kerala | 3 |
Gujarat | 2 |
Odisha | 2 |
Goa | 2 |
Haryana | 1 |
Rajasthan | 1 |
Assam | 1 (pending) |
Tamil Nadu leads by a large margin with 35 GMs. Why? It starts with Anand. His success made chess a cultural priority in the state. Schools like Velammal in Chennai built systems around chess, giving students tournament travel alongside regular academics. Private academies run by GMs (like GM Shyam Sundar's Chess Thulir, which produced GMs #86 and #87) created a local environment where elite coaching is accessible to more kids. West Bengal has a strong club culture going back decades. Kolkata's Alekhine Chess Club helped produce early masters like Barua and Ganguly. Maharashtra has leveraged a dense tournament network across Mumbai, Pune, and Nagpur. States like Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, despite large populations, still lack the school-level federation support that produces GMs.
Indian Women Who Hold the Full GM Title
Only four Indian women have ever earned the open Grandmaster title (not just the WGM title). This list shows how rare and how difficult the achievement is:
Name | Year | How She Got There |
|---|---|---|
Koneru Humpy | 2002 | Competed in male-dominated open events; became the archetype for Indian women |
Harika Dronavalli | 2011 | Built on positional strength; multiple Women's World Championship medals |
Vaishali Rameshbabu | 2024 | Crossed 2500 at El Llobregat Open in Spain; part of first-ever sibling GM duo |
Divya Deshmukh | 2025 | Won FIDE Women's World Cup directly, bypassing the norm process entirely |
India also has 23 players who hold the Woman Grandmaster (WGM) title, including Tania Sachdev, Padmini Rout, Bhakti Kulkarni, and Soumya Swaminathan.
India's Most Recent Grandmasters (2022 to 2026)
The pace of new titles since 2022 has been extraordinary. Here is every player who earned the GM title from 2022 onwards, along with the event where it was finalized:
# | Name | Year | Final Norm Event |
|---|---|---|---|
73 | Bharath Subramaniyam | 2022 | Vergani Cup, Cattolica, Italy |
74 | Rahul Srivatshav P | 2022 | Cattolica Chess Festival, Italy |
75 | Pranav V | 2022 | Limpedea Open, Romania |
76 | Pranav Anand | 2022 | World Youth U-16 Championship / Biel Festival |
77 | Aditya Mittal | 2022 | El Llobregat Open, Spain |
78 | Koustav Chatterjee | 2023 | MPL 59th National Senior Championship, India |
79 | Pranesh M | 2023 | Rilton Cup, Stockholm, Sweden |
80 | Vignesh N. R. | 2023 | NordWest Cup, Germany |
81 | Sayantan Das | 2023 | Cannes Open, France |
82 | Prraneeth Vuppala | 2023 | Baku Open, Azerbaijan |
83 | Aditya Samant | 2023 | Biel Master Tournament, Switzerland |
84 | Vaishali Rameshbabu | 2024 | IV El Llobregat Open, Spain |
85 | Shyaam Nikhil P. | 2024 | Dubai Police Masters, UAE |
86 | Srihari L R | 2025 | Asian Individual Championship, UAE |
87 | Harikrishnan A Ra | 2025 | La Plagne International Festival, France |
88 | Divya Deshmukh | 2025 | FIDE Women's World Cup, Georgia |
89 | Rohith Krishna S | 2025 | Almaty Masters, Kazakhstan |
90 | Ilamparthi AR | 2025 | Bijeljina Open, Bosnia |
91 | V. S. Raahul | 2025 | ASEAN Championship, Philippines |
92 | Aaryan Varshney | 2026 | Andranik Margaryan Memorial, Armenia |
93 | Aarav Dengla | 2026 | GM Mix Bijeljina, Bosnia |
A few stories from this group stand out. Sayantan Das waited 5.5 years between securing his final norm and crossing the 2500 rating barrier. He finally did it by winning the Cannes Open in 2023. Shyaam Nikhil P. had an even longer journey. He crossed 2500 in 2012, but early norm technicalities were voided. He had to keep going until 2024 to finalize everything at the Dubai Police Masters. Twelve years of patience. Meanwhile, Divya Deshmukh skipped the whole waiting game. She won the FIDE Women's World Cup 2025 outright. Under FIDE rules, that result grants the title directly.
Can Your Child Become a Grandmaster?
That's the real question, isn't it? The data from India's GM list gives a clear answer: starting early matters a lot. Almost every Indian GM on this list began serious chess training before the age of 8. Players like Gukesh and Pragg were competing at national level by age 9 or 10. But raw talent alone is not the whole story. The other factor is quality coaching. Every player on this list trained under a structured system with strong coaches who knew how to build rating gains step by step. Kingdom of Chess is India's top online chess academy, and it is the only platform on this list that offers live, interactive training with FIDE-certified coaches including GMs and IMs. Students train from home but compete and improve at a pace that matches what you see in this list. GM Diptayan Ghosh (2577), IM Kushager Krishnater (who trained 20+ titled players including Arjun Erigaisi), and IM Sanket Chakravarthy (2303) are among the coaches at Kingdom of Chess. These are not just instructors. They are the people behind India's chess rise. With over 10,000 students across 30+ countries, Kingdom of Chess uses a structured path from beginner (Pawn level) all the way to advanced competitive play (King level). Every student gets monthly progress reports, a parent dashboard, and small class sizes.
The Top Indian GMs Competing Today (2026)
The current top active Indian players by peak FIDE rating:
Player | Peak Rating | Best Achievement |
|---|---|---|
Arjun Erigaisi | 2801 | World No. 3 contender; crossed 2800 |
Gukesh Dommaraju | 2794 | Youngest Undisputed World Champion |
Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu | 2785 | 2023 World Cup finalist |
Chithambaram Aravindh | 2749 | Multiple-time National Champion; World No. 11 |
Vidit Gujrathi | 2747 | 2024 Candidates participant |
Viswanathan Anand | 2817 (peak) | 15th World Champion |
Nihal Sarin | 2723 | Blitz and Rapid specialist |
Krishnan Sasikiran | 2720 | Former Asian Champion |
India's top 10 male players averaged over 2725 ELO in 2025. That places them second in the world, behind only the United States. And India won double team gold at the 2024 Chess Olympiad, taking both the open and women's events.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was India's first chess Grandmaster? Viswanathan Anand became India's first Grandmaster in 1988. He later became the 15th World Chess Champion, holding the title from 2007 to 2013. How many chess Grandmasters does India have in 2026? India has 93 officially confirmed Grandmasters as of early 2026. A 94th (IM Mayank Chakraborty from Assam) is pending formal FIDE ratification at the next FIDE Congress. Who is the youngest chess Grandmaster from India? Gukesh Dommaraju earned the GM title at 12 years, 7 months, and 17 days old. He missed the all-time world record by just 17 days. He later became the youngest Undisputed World Chess Champion at 18. Which state in India has produced the most Grandmasters? Tamil Nadu leads with 35 Grandmasters, followed by Maharashtra (14) and West Bengal (11). Tamil Nadu's dominance is tied to the legacy of Viswanathan Anand and strong school-level chess institutions like Velammal in Chennai. Which Indian women have earned the full Grandmaster title? Four Indian women hold the open GM title: Koneru Humpy (2002), Harika Dronavalli (2011), Vaishali Rameshbabu (2024), and Divya Deshmukh (2025). At what age should a child start chess to become a Grandmaster? Most Indian GMs started serious training before age 8. Early structured coaching with a proven curriculum gives children the strongest foundation for long-term improvement and title progression.
