CHESS PLAYERS from India

Top 10

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary Indian Chess Players of all time. This list of famous Indian Chess Players is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of Indian Chess Players.

1. Viswanathan Anand (b. 1969)

With an HPI of 59.90, Viswanathan Anand is the most famous Indian Chess Player.  His biography has been translated into 91 different languages on wikipedia.

Viswanathan "Vishy" Anand (born 11 December 1969) is an Indian chess grandmaster. Anand is a five-time World Chess Champion, a two-time World Rapid Chess Champion, a two-time Chess World Cup Champion and a World Blitz Chess Cup Champion. He became the first grandmaster from India in 1988, and he has the eighth-highest peak FIDE rating of all time. In 2022, he was the elected Deputy President of FIDE. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential players in the history of the game and has had an important role in popularizing it in India. Anand defeated Alexei Shirov in a six-game match to win the 2000 FIDE World Chess Championship, a title he held until 2002. He became the undisputed world champion in 2007 and defended his title against Vladimir Kramnik in 2008, Veselin Topalov in 2010, and Boris Gelfand in 2012. In 2013, he lost the title to challenger Magnus Carlsen, and he lost a rematch to Carlsen in 2014 after winning the 2014 Candidates Tournament. In April 2006, Anand became the fourth player in history to pass the 2800 Elo mark on the FIDE rating list, after Kramnik, Topalov, and Garry Kasparov. He occupied the number-one position for 21 months, the sixth-longest period on record. Known for his rapid playing speed as a child, Anand earned the sobriquet "Lightning Kid" during his early career in the 1980s. He has since developed into a universal player, and many consider him the greatest rapid chess player of his generation. He won the FIDE World Rapid Chess Championship in 2003 and 2017, the World Blitz Chess Cup in 2000, and numerous other top-level rapid and blitz events. Anand was the first recipient of the Khel Ratna Award in 1991–92, India's highest sporting honour. In 2007, he was awarded India's second-highest civilian award, the Padma Vibhushan, making him the first sportsperson to receive the award.

2. Humpy Koneru (b. 1987)

With an HPI of 56.77, Humpy Koneru is the 2nd most famous Indian Chess Player.  Her biography has been translated into 47 different languages.

Koneru Humpy (born 31 March 1987) is an Indian chess grandmaster. Humpy is a runner-up of the Women's World Chess Championship and the reigning two-time Women's World Rapid Chess Champion. In 2002, she became the youngest female player--and the first Indian female player--to achieve the title of Grandmaster, aged 15 years, 1 month, 27 days, a record only since surpassed by Hou Yifan. Humpy is a gold medalist at the Olympiad, Asian Games, and Asian Championship. In October 2007, she became the second female player, after Judit Polgár, to exceed the 2600 Elo rating mark, being rated 2606. Humpy won the Women's World Rapid Chess Championship in 2019 and 2024.

3. Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa (b. 2005)

With an HPI of 52.18, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa is the 3rd most famous Indian Chess Player.  His biography has been translated into 44 different languages.

Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa (born 10 August 2005) is an Indian chess grandmaster. A chess prodigy, Praggnanandhaa placed second in the 2023 Chess World Cup, and is the only Indian to have won the Tata Steel Chess Tournament after Viswanathan Anand. He was also part of the Indian team that won the silver medal at the 2022 Asian Games in the men's team competition, and the gold medal in the open section at the 45th Chess Olympiad in 2024. In June 2025, he would sign for esports club Team Liquid.

4. Pentala Harikrishna (b. 1986)

With an HPI of 51.60, Pentala Harikrishna is the 4th most famous Indian Chess Player.  His biography has been translated into 32 different languages.

Pentala Harikrishna (born 10 May 1986) is an Indian chess grandmaster. He achieved a peak world ranking of 10 in November 2016, and a peak Elo rating of 2770 in December 2016. On 17 August 2001, he became the youngest Indian to attain the title of grandmaster, a record which was subsequently held by Koneru Humpy, Parimarjan Negi, Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu and Gukesh Dommaraju in that order. He was Commonwealth Champion in 2001, World Junior Champion in 2004, and Asian Individual Champion in 2011. Harikrishna won the Tata Steel Group B in 2012 and the Biel MTO Masters Tournament Open event in 2013. He represented India at seven Chess Olympiads from 2000 to 2012 and won team Bronze at the World Team Chess Championships in 2010. At the Asian Team Championships, Harikrishna won his teams gold medal (2009) and two silver medals (2003 and 2012). In February 2013, Harikrishna achieved an Elo rating 2700 for the first time, only the third Indian player to do so.

5. Harika Dronavalli (b. 1991)

With an HPI of 50.13, Harika Dronavalli is the 5th most famous Indian Chess Player.  Her biography has been translated into 35 different languages.

Harika Dronavalli (born 12 January 1991) is an Indian chess player who holds the FIDE title of Grandmaster (GM). She was part of the gold winning women's team at the 45th Chess Olympiad in 2024. She has won three bronze medals in the Women's World Chess Championship, in 2012, 2015 and 2017. Harika was honored with the Arjuna Award for the year 2007–08 by the government of India. In 2016, she won the FIDE Women's Grand Prix event at Chengdu, China and rose up from world no. 11 to world no. 5 in FIDE women's ranking. In 2019, she was awarded the Padma Shri for her contributions towards the field of sports.

6. Vidit Gujrathi (b. 1994)

With an HPI of 46.09, Vidit Gujrathi is the 6th most famous Indian Chess Player.  His biography has been translated into 25 different languages.

Vidit Gujrathi (born 24 October 1994) is an Indian chess grandmaster. Gujrathi attained the title of grandmaster in January 2013, becoming the 30th player from India to do so. He is the fourth Indian player to have crossed the Elo rating of 2700. He is a double gold medalist at the Chess Olympiad. He is also a silver medalist at the Asian Games. He became the third Indian to qualify for the Candidates tournament by winning Grand Swiss 2023.

7. R Vaishali (b. 2001)

With an HPI of 45.56, R Vaishali is the 7th most famous Indian Chess Player.  Her biography has been translated into 28 different languages.

Vaishali Rameshbabu (born 21 June 2001) is an Indian chess grandmaster. She emerged victorious in the Women's Grand Swiss Tournament 2023, securing qualification for the Women's Candidates Tournament 2024. She won the bronze medal at Women's World Blitz Chess Championship 2024. She is the elder sister of chess grandmaster Praggnanandhaa.

8. Gukesh D (b. 2006)

With an HPI of 43.50, Gukesh D is the 8th most famous Indian Chess Player.  His biography has been translated into 64 different languages.

Gukesh Dommaraju (born 29 May 2006) is an Indian chess grandmaster and the reigning World Chess Champion. A chess prodigy, Gukesh is the youngest undisputed world champion, the youngest player to have surpassed a FIDE rating of 2750, doing so at the age of 17, and the third-youngest to have surpassed 2700 Elo at the age of 16. He earned the title of grandmaster at the age of 12 and is the third-youngest grandmaster in chess history. Gukesh started playing chess at the age of 7. He won the under-12 title at the World Youth Chess Championship in 2018, and multiple gold medals at the 2018 Asian Youth Chess Championship. He became an International Master in March 2017. On 15 January 2019, at the age of 12 years, 7 months, and 17 days, he became the then second-youngest grandmaster in the history of the game, after Sergey Karjakin. He was part of the Indian team that won the silver medal at the 2022 Asian Games in the men's team competition. Gukesh won the team bronze and the individual gold medal at the 44th Chess Olympiad in 2022. In the September 2023 rating list, Gukesh became the top-rated Indian player, surpassing Viswanathan Anand's 37-year record. In the 45th Chess Olympiad in 2024, he won both team and individual gold medals. In 2024, he became the youngest winner of the Candidates Tournament and successfully challenged Ding Liren in the World Chess Championship, becoming the 18th and youngest undisputed world champion, at the age of 18 years and 195 days.

9. Tania Sachdev (b. 1986)

With an HPI of 37.27, Tania Sachdev is the 9th most famous Indian Chess Player.  Her biography has been translated into 34 different languages.

Tania Sachdev (born 20 August 1986) is an Indian chess player, who holds the FIDE titles of International Master (IM) and Woman Grandmaster (WGM). She is a two-time Indian women's chess champion in 2006 and 2007, one-time Asian women's chess champion in 2007 and three-time Commonwealth Women's Chess Champion in 2016, 2018, and 2019. She is also a chess presenter and commentator.

10. Krishnan Sasikiran (b. 1981)

With an HPI of 33.93, Krishnan Sasikiran is the 10th most famous Indian Chess Player.  His biography has been translated into 19 different languages.

Krishnan Sasikiran (Tamil: கிருஷ்ணன் சசிகிரண்; born 7 January 1981) is an Indian chess grandmaster. He was one of Viswanathan Anand's seconds in the World Chess Championship 2013.