New Delhi: The Chennai Grand Masters is an elite-level annual closed tournament held every year in what is considered the chess capital of India. Divided into two divisions, Masters and Challengers, players from different countries are invited to compete under one roof.Scheduled for 2023, the tournament was announced just four days before it began, leading to criticism that the tournament was organized at the last minute to help Domaraju Gokesh and Arjun Erigisi qualify for the 2024 Candidates tournament. However, the Vice President of FIDE Viswanathan Anand Explained that the organization of the tournament was within the rules.2025 saw its third edition. R. Vaishali, then the toast of the country, was invited to compete in the Challengers section, which includes relatively lower-ranked players compared to the Masters field. Winning the Challengers means qualifying for the next edition of the Masters. Vaishali Had a nightmare tournament, finishing rock bottom, but that’s a story for another day. The winner of the Challengers section was Munirathanam Praneesh, a baby-faced killer on the board.
Pranesh’s name has come to the fore again as he played a key role in the victory of Vaishali Candidates in Cyprus, helping him earn the right to challenge China’s Joe Wenjin for the world championship.
The ‘funny person’ in Vaishali’s camp
“It was mainly the idea of Ramesh sir and Aarthi aunty (wife of WGM Aarthi Ramaswamy and RB Ramesh) to take Pranesh to the candidates as he is a very nice and funny person,” Vaishali told ChessBase India after his historic win on Wednesday.In the tense environment of a contenders’ tournament, where dreams are made or broken over 14 rounds of grinding, the psychological weight can be weak.
Vaishali’s mother Nagalakshmi, Praneesh M, Ramesh Babu Praganandha, and Vibhu Suri (Photo by Michael Waloza)
“The idea was that I might get tense because there are a lot of tense moments, and he would keep it light. That was the plan. And that’s exactly what happened,” revealed Vaishali. “There were a lot of high-pressure moments and a lot of tough games. Even after tough games, every time I went into his room, he was like, ‘It’s okay bro,’ that was his thing.”In addition to her role in helping him mentally, Vaishali also revealed that they developed a few opportunities together, suggesting that Pranesh, in his own right, was as much a strategic wizard as he was a trusted partner. “He’s been a great support throughout the tournament, and we’ve played a lot of table tennis and paddle,” he added.
From Krai Kodi to Cyprus
The 19-year-old grandmaster’s journey sometimes comes across as a good old-fashioned work of fiction. Karaikudi is a small town in Tamil Nadu, and it is the birthplace of Praneesh. With her mother working in an anganwadi, looking after underprivileged children, and her father an accountant at a textile shop, Parneesh has never let limited resources be 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 did not have access to a laptop to prepare for chess. Believe in yourself, and luck will lift you up.”In an era where engine manufacturing is dominated by elite chess, Parneesh’s rise was uniform. However, he is too shy to call them boundaries.
I just learned from what I could find
Indian Grandmaster Pranesh M
“I didn’t worry about what I didn’t have,” Parneesh told TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive chat after his Chennai Grandmasters Challengers title. “I just thought about what I had: my coach, my parents, my books. Even previous generations didn’t have laptops, but they still became grandmasters.”With no digital resources, the Cry Cody boy taught himself from borrowed books, handwritten notes and old chess magazines.“I learned from everything I found,” he recalled with great simplicity.
Her relationship with RB Ramesh
“When I was five, I was just running around making noise,” he recalled. “So my parents brought chess and carrom from home. My brother played first and I picked him up after that.”At the age of 11, he, already a familiar face at the national championships, joined Chess Gurukal, an academy run by renowned Chennai coach RB Ramesh.Ramesh, who has mentored the likes of R Praganandha and Vaishali, saw a spark in Pranesh early on. In 2023, he became the 79th Grandmaster of India.Their bond between master and student is aptly depicted by a photo of Ramesh trying to lift Praneesh in celebration after his Chennai Grandmasters Challenger win surfaced online.“He tried so hard to pick me up,” laughs Pranesh. “I’m a lot heavier now, so it must have been hard for him.”
The unsung hero
Currently in third year of B.Sc. Computer Science at SRM University, Pranesh balances his studies with the rigors of professional chess.But in Cyprus his role was different. He wasn’t playing for his ratings or trophies. He was there to ensure that Vaishali was not buried under the weight of history.Also read: Explained: How India’s R Vaishali caged Legno’s ‘dragon’ to claim historic women’s candidates 2026 titleAs the world watches Vaishali prepare for her World Championship match against Joe Venjen, her success story cannot be told without mentioning the youngster from Karaikudi.Praneesh M, the guy who once studied chess without a laptop, has now helped win Pilot India’s first female candidates.
