Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, the young man who is currently the talk of the country, doesn’t speak much. By his own admission, “I am a fun person only if I am with someone I know well.” In my case, I have to say that wasn’t really the case, and most of his answers to start with weren’t really ones you would have hoped for at the beginning of an interview. He wouldn’t elaborate, and I was left wanting to hear more!
But with time, he started to open up. And when I asked about the influence of Vishwanathan Anand and the Westbridge Anand Chess Academy, he was in full flow, much like he was against Fabiano Caruana in the tie-break.
This was an interview we recorded a couple of months ago, and I hadn’t played it or written it out. I had meant it to be a part of a series I was working on, the golden generation of Indian chess. Yet, we decided to publish it now for it is perhaps the best time for readers to know more about the teenage sensation.
Excerpts from the conversation:
Boria: Chess runs in the family. You started playing chess seeing your sister play the game, right?
Pragg: Yes I picked up chess because of my sister. I used to see her play at home, and we started playing together. She started playing from the age of 6.
Boria: Do you still play together?
Pragg: Sometimes. If we are both at home, then yes. But not very often.
Boria: You have beaten Magnus Carlssen multiple times in the past. When you first played him, were you a little overawed/ It was Magnus Carlssen, after all.
Pragg: These were mostly rapid games, but no I wasn’t overawed. I mean, yes, you do think your opponent is the world’s best, but you have to take that feeling out of the mind when you are playing. You need to prepare well, and be in the best shape. That’s what I did.
Boria: Can you please talk to me about the influence of Vishwanathan Anand on Indian chess?
Pragg: Indian chess really happened because of Anand Sir. It was he who led the way for each one of us. We have all seen Anand Sir, and what he has achieved. And a lot of players have then taken up the sport because of him. Like I said, there was nothing before him of that standard, and it really started because of him.
Boria: And the influence of the Westbridge Anand Chess Academy?
Pragg: It has a huge influence. First, it was started during the lockdown, and was something each one of us could look forward to. Second, we were there in groups and it was interesting who could find the solution to a problem the earliest. So it was competitive as well. The sessions would be for six months, and we would have three sessions a week, so these kind of things were excellent. Also, the fact that you were in constant touch with Anand sir, and could interact with him and speak to him regularly, it was invaluable. The kind of support we have received from the Westbridge Anand Academy has been really fantastic.
Boria: This is the golden generation of Indian chess, as Anand said to me. Each one of you is a teenager, and yet, has achieved a lot. And you are friends.
Pragg: Each one of us is good for each other. We see each other’s success and feel inspired. If Gukesh or Arjun [Erigaisi] or Nihal [Sarin] can do it, so can I, and vice versa. We also spend a lot of time with each other, and have meals together. There is rivalry as well, but it is a kind of rivalry which helps us all because we are all friends. When we are in the middle of a tournament, may be we aren’t dining together but soon after the tournament is done, we would go out together again. So there is a lot of social time that we spend together. Like I said, we are rivals, yes, but we are friends and this helps us all. We kind of grow together.
Boria: During Covid and subsequently, we have seen the game just explode in India. Queen’s Gambit [the Netflix series] helped. Your thoughts?
Pragg: Yes, I agree. And in India, the number of people who started playing chess increased a lot. You could see that. And people started following the game more. During the Olympiad last year, the kind of euphoria for the game we saw was unprecedented. Everyone was following, and a lot of people wanted to take photos and autographs. The sport was really vibrant, and that can only be good going forward.
Boria: You are playing on the highest stages of all. How do you deal with pressure? You are just 17!
Pragg: I try and stay off social media completely during tournaments. And I don’t try and think about the stage or the tournament or the opponent. I try not to read about things. As I said, you don’t want to look at social media because that’s how pressure starts to build. Not that you don’t feel pressure, you always do, but you need to try and deal with it and cope as well as you can.
Boria: And adversity or a bad loss? In sport, it will happen.
Pragg: Oh yes, and I have lost a lot in chess. Losses don’t faze me. I know you will lose, but then with every loss, you tend to get better. You learn, and you come back better and stronger.
Boria: And what are you like backstage? What do you love to eat, what music do you listen to? Are you fun loving, and do you play pranks? What are you like when you are in your zone?
Pragg: I am fun-loving and open up when I am with people I know really well. That’s when I speak a lot. With people I don’t know well, I take time to open up. I love to listen to mostly Tamil music. And yes, I love listening to music a lot. As far as food is concerned, it is mostly South Indian food. I do get South Indian food these days when I travel, but in cities. If we are going to the interiors of a country, it is a challenge to get South Indian food and that’s when you have to manage.
Boria: Grandmaster at 12! Anand was Grandmaster at 18. All I will say is you go well and be the best you can. India is proud.
Pragg: Thank you very much. I enjoyed speaking to you. And thank you for the support.