'Now I'm used to it': Indian chess prodigy Praggnanandhaa on how he handles fame

How do you remain grounded when you achieve stardom at a very young age? We could not resist asking this question to Indian chess grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa, who chooses his words as carefully as he makes his move on the board.

Still only 19, Praggnanandhaa, who became a national sensation in India by earning the international master title at the age of 10, is now among the world’s best players.

During an interview with Khaleej Times, Praggnanandhaa, the youngest player to reach a World Cup final, revealed the reason behind India’s incredible success in producing so many talented youngsters like the 19-year-old Gukesh Dommaraju, the reigning world champion, Arjun Erigaisi and Divya Deshmukh, another 19-year-old who recently won the Women’s World Cup.

Q. It’s been an incredible journey for you. How does it feel when you look back?

It just feels like we're getting started. I have been doing well for the past two to three years, and there is still a lot more to achieve. I'm working hard towards it, and I am motivated to play more tournaments and to achieve a lot more.

Q. It’s not easy to handle fame at such a young age. But you seem to be so grounded. How do you do that? Is it because of the way you were brought up by your parents?  

Yeah, I would say experience also matters. I mean, all of these, of course, do matter, but yeah, I've had recognition from an early age. It was difficult for me back then, but now I'm used to it, and I also don't read what other people write. And, I don’t think about what others might say, and all these things. I am off social media during tournaments, and, yeah, you should just try to work on chess and play tournaments. That's all I do, and I think it is working for me.

Praggnanandhaa with his mother Nagalakshmi

Q. Viswanathan Anand was the flagbearer of Indian chess for such a long time. But now so many super-talented youngsters have emerged at the highest level. What’s the secret to India’s chess wave?  

I think it’s a combination of a lot of things, and starting with (Anand) Sir, he has inspired all of us. He was a world champion when we started playing. Recently, I was speaking to Arjun (Erigaisi), and we realised that almost all of us (from India) who are at the top right now were present at the Chennai (2013 World Chess Championship) match between Anand Sir and Magnus Carlsen. So we were all inspired by those matches Anand Sir was playing. I think that's one of the reasons. And also we have a good system in India, where we have a lot of tournaments happening regularly. Trainers are there, and, yeah, and we also get government support. And clearly, we also have been getting corporate support, which is also quite important, especially when you may have to train and play a lot of tournaments at the top level. Yeah, the support is really essential. And fortunately for me, I've been supported by Adani Group, and other corporate houses are also coming into the game. It's great to see.

Q. You spoke about Anand, who was a five-time world champion and one of the greatest to play the game in history. It’s probably one of your goals as well to win those very big tournaments…

Yeah, I have my goals, but I try to take one tournament at a time because when you think about a larger thing, you can get carried away. It's, you know, about playing one game at a time and one tournament at a time. And that's what I'm doing. This year has been good for me. Right now, I'm focusing on trying to make it to the Candidates.

Praggnanandhaa competes against Norway's Magnus Carlsen during the final at the Fide Chess World Cup in Baku on August 24, 2023.

Q. Talking about tournaments, you recently took part in the ESports World Cup in Saudi Arabia. Online chess has become very popular in recent years, but how was the experience of being part of such a big Esports tournament?

Yeah, it was an interesting experience, and it is different from the way we play tournaments usually. It's a hybrid format, we had to wear this noise cancelation headphones, which we are not used to. And yeah, it was an interesting experience. I was not happy with the way I played. But overall, I enjoyed playing there. I'm really looking forward to the next year's EWC already because I want to give my best there. It's a new opportunity for players, and also, you know, it'll take chess to a new audience. I think overall, it's a win-win situation for the game.

Q. Chess is also quite popular in the UAE. Salem Saleh is a grandmaster and the country also produced a 15-year-old grandmaster in Rouda Alserkal recently. What is your impression of the chess talent in the UAE and also in the Middle East?

I think the top grandmaster Salem Saleh from the UAE, he's been there for a long time. He's well known. Now we have also seen tournaments happening regularly in Dubai and Sharjah. So there are tournaments happening regularly and there are chess clubs there doing a good job. I am hoping to see more and more players coming up from the UAE and the region.

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