Champion chess player R. Praggnanandhaa (full name Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu) was seen playing chess with the chief minister of Tamil Nadu, Vijay, during a ceremony where he received a Rs. 50 lakh award for winning the Norway Chess.
Praggnanandhaa is the second-highest-ranked Indian in classical chess. A week ago, he was ranked No. 16 in the world, and now, he has climbed up five spots to rank 11.
This rise in rank came due to his triumph in Norway Chess, one of the biggest classical chess competitions in the world. The tournament has been a part of the chess calendar for 14 years now. Six of the biggest chess players in the world played a double-round robin of classical chess games to determine a winner.
Praggnanandhaa Plays Chess With CM Vijay
Norway Chess 2026 was played in Oslo from May 25 to June 5. The six players in the men’s bracket were Pragg, Wesley So from the United States, Alireza Firouzja of France, Vincent Keymer of Germany, current World Chess Champion Gukesh Dommaraju, and arguably the greatest chess player of all time, Magnus Carlsen.
Praggnanandhaa did not come into this competition as the favourite. While he had been in decent form in recent months, the likes of Carlsen, So, and Firouzja were expected to battle it out for the title.
However, it was the 20-year-old Indian who came out on top with 18 points out of a possible 30. The standout was his two victories over five-time classical chess champion Magnus Carlsen, who himself finished fourth in a six-man table.
After a massive win in a field full of world-champion-quality players, R Praggnanandhaa returned to India amid massive fanfare from the enormous chess fan base in the country.
Now, only a couple of days after his thumping victory in Norway Chess, Pragg has been honoured by the chief minister of his home state of Tamil Nadu, C. Joseph Vijay.
Vijay, who is a massive Tamil movie star, was recently elected as the CM of the state after his party TVK emerged as the most popular in the Vidhan Sabha elections.
The 51-year-old, who is a notable chess fan, felicitated Praggnanandhaa in a special ceremony in Chennai. The chess star was also awarded Rs. 50 lakh for his historic win on behalf of the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu.
During the ceremony, Vijay and Praggnanandhaa were also seen playing chess, a heartfelt moment amid a special event.
Watch: Praggnanandhaa Plays Chess With CM Vijay
However, Norway Chess 2026 was not all sunshine and rainbows for the Indian contingent. The only other Indian player in the competition, world champion Gukesh D, finished last with just eight points.
This is not a good sign for the world champ, who has tumbled down to 25th in classical rankings just months away from a title defence against Javokhir Sindarov of Uzbekistan, ranked fourth in the world.
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