Ilamparthi AR became India’s 90th Grandmaster at the age of 16. NEW DELHI: The year was 2022. The Tamil Nadu Chess Association organized a camp at Pollachi for the state’s strongest junior players who had qualified for the Junior Nationals. Ilamparthi, then just 13, was not one of them. Nevertheless, taking his grandfather’s hand, he appeared anyway.“He came with his grandfather just to meet me,” recalls Grandmaster (GM) Shyam Sundar Mohanraj, one of India’s most respected chess coaches, to TimesofIndia.com. “He was very shy, spoke in respectful slang as spoken in the Pollachi-Coimbatore area.
World Chess Championship Overall Journey Explained: Norwegian Chess Fan Questions Answered | Exclusive
Recognizing a spark of genius in him, Shyam decided to make the young man his protégé. Three years later, he is now India’s 90th Grandmaster.what’s in a nameThe name Ilamparthi has a meaning that almost predicts his journey. “It’s a cute Tamil name,” his father Ravikumar, a 47-year-old software engineer, tells TimesofIndia.com. “Ilam” means young and “Parthi” means sun. Together it means the morning sun.”Like any traditional Chennai family, though Ravikumar knew chess, it was Ilamparthi’s mother, P Gayathri, a science teacher, who first introduced him to the chessboard.“She taught him how to build the pieces,” says Ravikumar. “Then I taught him the rules and regulations, and he caught on quickly.When the prodigy born in 2009 was five years old, he was already racing on the national circuit.“In 2014, he played the under-5 national team in Delhi and won the title,” says his father. “Then came the under-7 crown and the gold at the Asian championships. That’s when we realized she had something special.”Trouble behind the scenes
Ilamparthi AR with his coach GM Shyam Sundar. (Photo by special agreement)
After the medals, the family continued to fight several silent battles.“Chess is not like other sports,” says Ravikumar. “You travel a lot for every tournament and the tournament lasts many days and you spend a lot on travel, food and lodging. It adds up quickly.”As Ilamparthi improved, the costs increased.“As soon as he got a higher rating, he had to go abroad,” admits the father. “Playing tournaments only in India would not help him improve. Each international trip costs three to four million rupees.”Some relief came through scholarships and CSR funding, but not enough. “It’s very hard to find sponsors in chess,” he says.Ravikumar’s younger son, now 12, is an epileptic special child at home. “He can’t talk, walk or anything,” says Ravikumar. “So we have to do everything for him. At one point I couldn’t travel with Ilam anymore… From the beginning of 2025 he started traveling alone. The last seven, eight months it’s been the same.”An obedient one
Ilamparthi AR engaged in intensive training at the Chess Academy. (Photo by special agreement)
Amid mounting pressure and worries outside the game, Ilamparthi finds solace in the hut of his chess guru.“Whenever he is in Chennai, he is either at my house or at the academy,” says Shyam. “He is very hardworking and disciplined. No social media, no distractions. He doesn’t even watch movies. Once he saw my photo with actor Sivakarthikeyan at my academy and asked who he was. He knows so little about cinema.”At Shyam’s academy, Chess Thulir, the players often swap chessboards for cricket bats as everyone leaves their chairs and takes to the field, where Ilamparthi shows a touch of former India captain MS Dhoni’s signature ‘blink and miss it’ charm behind the stumps.“When we started playing cricket, I still remember he became too good at wicket-keeping,” laughs Shyam. “Within a split second he got the ball and hit the stumps. It was just amazing for our amateur level.”The same speed is also reflected on the board.“He loves solving puzzles,” adds the trainer. “Even strong GMs take 15 or 20 minutes to complete a puzzle; Ilam finishes in three to five. He used to solve 20 or 30 in a day. I told him to stop for a while because it was affecting his game. He just said, ‘Okay, sir.’ No questions. Later, another guy from my academy asked him if they could solve one together, and he replied, ‘Sir told me no.’ He has such discipline.”GM title earned through patienceFor Ilamparthy, who became the International Champion (IM) in 2023, the GM title was an opportunity.“He missed it by half a point a few times,” says Shyam. “He came close, then lost or drew in the last round. But I told him it’s OK. The title will come. The GM title is nothing compared to our bigger goals, like becoming a world champion or maintaining this level.”Last week, Ilamparthu finally broke the deadlock and secured the final GM standard at the Bijeljina Open held in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Coach Shyam’s words helped him stay calm. “At the tournament where he finally came through, I told him not to chase the title but play good chess,” adds Shyam. “Once he stopped thinking about it, he played freely.Now that the GM title is at hand, the next goal is clear.“I want to make him an all-rounder,” says Shyam. “I don’t think about money or career,” adds father Ravikumar. “If I start worrying about it, he’ll lose focus. I just want him to be happy with chess.”The boy who once walked into the camp holding his grandfather’s hand now travels the world alone. And this is surely not the last time you will hear the name Ilamparthi because the sun is shining right now.
