Vaishali and coach RB Ramesh carrying Pranesh M (Photo by Michal Walusza and Chennai Grand Masters) NEW DELHI: The Chennai Grand Masters is an elite level annual closed tournament held every year in what is widely regarded as the chess capital of India. Players from different countries are divided into two sections, Masters and Challengers, to compete under one roof.The tournament was created in 2023 and was announced just four days before its start, leading to criticism that the tournament was organized at the last minute to help Dommaraj Gukesh and Arjun Erigaisi qualify for the 2024 Candidates Tournament. However, FIDE Deputy President Viswanathan Anand explained that the organization of the tournament was within the rules.It saw a third edition in 2025. R Vaishali, the toast of the nation at the moment, has been invited to compete in the Challengers section, which includes relatively lower-ranked players than the Masters field. Winning the Challengers means qualifying for the next year’s Masters. Vaishali had a terrible tournament and finished at the very bottom, but that’s a story for another day. The winner of the Challengers section was Munirethinam Pranesh, the baby-faced killer on the board.
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From No Laptop to Chess World Cup Dreams: Exclusive Interview with GM Pranesh M The name, Pranesh, resurfaced as he played a key role in Vaishali’s Candidates victory in Cyprus, helping her win the right to challenge China’s Ju Wenjun for the World Championship.
The “funny person” in Vaishali’s camp
“It was basically the idea of Mr. Ramesh and Aarthia aunty (WGM Aarthie Ramaswamy and wife of RB Ramesh) to take Pranesh as a candidate because he is a very nice and funny person,” Vaishali told ChessBase India after her historic win on Wednesday.In the tight environment of the Candidates tournament, where dreams are made or broken during 14-round grinds, the mental weight can be debilitating.
Vaishali’s mother Nagalakshmi, Pranesh M, Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and Vaibhav Suri (Photo by Michal Walusza)
“The idea was that I might be tense because there are a lot of tense moments and he would let it out. That was the plan. And the exact same thing happened,” revealed Vaishali. “There were a lot of high-pressure moments and a lot of tough games. Even after tough games, whenever I got into his room, he’d say ‘It was fine, akka’, that was his thing.”Apart from giving her mental support, Vaishali also revealed that they prepared several openings together, suggesting that Pranesh, a tactical wizard in his own right, was as much a sparring partner as a confidant. “We were very supportive throughout the tournament and we played a lot of table tennis and fell,” she added.
From Karaikudi to Cyprus
The journey of the nineteen-year-old grandmaster sometimes feels like a good old work of fiction. Karaikudi is a small town in Tamil Nadu and is the birthplace of Pranesh. With his mother working in an anganwadi, caring for underprivileged children, and his father being an accountant in a textile business, Pranesh never let limited resources become an excuse.When he became an International Master (IM) in 2020, his coach RB Ramesh wrote on social media, “Until he (Pranesh) became an IM, he didn’t have access to a laptop for his chess training. Believe in yourself and destiny will lift you up.”At a time when elite chess is dominated by engine preparation, Pranesh’s rise has been analogous. However, he is too shy to call them limitations.
I learned from what I found
Indian Grandmaster Pranesh M
“I didn’t worry about what I didn’t have,” Pranesh told TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive interaction after his Chennai Grand Masters Challengers title. “I was just thinking about what I had: my coach, my parents, my books. Even the earlier generations didn’t have laptops, but they still became grandmasters.”With no digital resources, the Karaikudi boy taught himself from borrowed books, handwritten notes and old chess magazines.“I just learned from everything I could find,” he recalled with utmost simplicity.
His bond with RB Ramesh
“When I was five, I was just running around making noise,” he recalled. “So my parents brought home chess and carrom. My brother played first and I picked it up after him.”At the age of 11, already a familiar face at national championships, he joined Chess Gurukul, an academy run by renowned Chennai coach RB Ramesh.Having mentored the likes of R Praggnanandhaa and Vaishali, Ramesh saw the spark in Pranesh early. In 2023, he became the 79th Grandmaster of India.Their bond between master and student is aptly illustrated by a picture of Ramesh trying to lift Pranesh in celebration after his victory at the Chennai Grandmasters Challenger surfaced online.“He was trying so hard to pick me up,” laughed Pranesh. “I’m a lot heavier now, so it must have been hard for him.
An unsung hero
He is currently in his third year of B.Sc. Computer Science at SRM University, Pranesh balances his studies with the rigors of professional chess.But his role in Cyprus was different. He wasn’t playing for his own rating or trophy. He was there to ensure that Vaishali did not buckle under the weight of history.READ ALSO: Explained: How India’s R Vaishali caged Lagna’s ‘dragon’ to claim historic Women’s Candidate 2026 titleAs the world watches Vaishali prepare for her World Championship match against Ju Wenjun, the story of her success cannot be told without mentioning the teenager from Karaikudi.
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Pranesh M, a boy who once studied chess without a laptop, has now helped pilot India to its first win in the Women’s Candidates category.
