Indian Grandmaster Aravindh Chithambaram has firmly established himself as a rising force in the international chess arena. On Friday, he clinched victory in the Masters Section of the Prague International Chess Festival, delivering an undefeated performance across nine rounds.
What made this achievement even more remarkable was the level of competition he faced. Aravindh outperformed an elite lineup, including world No. 8 R Praggnanandhaa, Freestyle Chess Weissenhaus winner Vincent Keymer, Dutch GM Anish Giri, and Chinese powerhouse Wei Yi, among others.
A Pattern of Success Against the Best
This Prague victory did not occur in isolation- only a few months before the young awardee grabbed the first prize at the Chennai Grand Masters by defeating world No. 5 Arjun Erigaisi and illustrious Grandmaster campaigners such as Levon Aronian, Maxime Vachier-Lagrave, and Vidit Gujrathi. Aravindh always shows his mettle in slaying giants at chess, even as less preferred.
Early Life and Journey into Chess
Aravindh was born on September 11, 1999, in Madurai, Tamil Nadu. He had a rough childhood. Lost the father when only three, raised by a mother working as Life Insurance Corporation agent. Enamored first with cricket, chess became known to Aravindh when he was introduced to the game by his grandfather when the boy was just seven.
“After my grandpa taught me some basic rules, one of my relatives asked me to play a tournament in Madurai. So, I just gave it a try,” Aravindh recalled in an interview with ChessBase India.
His chess talents were eminent from an early age, and on the advice of GM RB Ramesh, he migrated to Chennai-the city called the chess capital of India. Under GM Ramesh, Aravindh joined the Velammal Higher Secondary School, the same institution that also produced the reigning world champion, D. Gukesh.
Climbing the Ranks from an Early Age
Aravindh's rapid rise in the chess world commenced at the age of 12 when he won the Indian U-19 Chess Championship. In 2013, still a FIDE Master, he shocked the chessing world by defeating four Grandmasters and two International Masters to win the Chennai Open. This victory gave him his first Grandmaster norm. The following year, in 2014, he became an International Master, and in 2015, he was awarded the coveted Grandmaster title.
In 2018, he made history by becoming India’s national champion in all three formats: Classical, Rapid, and Blitz, a record no other Indian player has achieved.
Breaking Into the Elite Club
Aravindh's performances of late have been converting to revered territories in the chess world. In November, he reached the target of 2700 of the first time in his career. The victory in Prague sealed his place with the elite of the elite.
Overtaking Anand in Live Rankings
In a significant push to his career, Wednesday saw Aravindh rise above five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand into live World No. 14 after his phenomenally successful win over Dutch GM Anish Giri in the seventh round of the Prague Masters which saw him gain 5.0 Elo points.
With a live rating of 2745.1, Aravindh is now India's No. 4 player after newly-crowned Classical World Champion D. Gukesh, Arjun Erigaisi, and R Praggnanandhaa. The chaise of his galloping rise suggests the promise of greater things on the world chess stage.