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Velammal Vidyalaya Institutes are known for producing some of India’s most famous chess players and grandmasters.
Velammal has played a key role in transforming Chennai into a chess powerhouse, by training hundreds of budding players through expert coaching.
GM D Gukesh on Thursday created history by becoming the youngest world chess champion. The 18-year-old player defeated Chinese GM Ding Liren in the final game 14 of the World Chess Championship. As Gukesh becomes the youngest world champion and only the second Indian Grandmaster to achieve the title, his school, Velammal Vidyalaya in Mogappair, Chennai, is eagerly waiting for the homecoming star, who wore the school cap Another achievement has been added.
Velammal Vidyalaya Institutes are known for producing some of India’s most famous chess players and grandmasters. The legacy of the school ranges from D. Gukesh to R. Talents up to Praganananda are included. Prominent women grandmasters, such as Varshini S (Velavan’s daughter), Vaishali R (Pragganananda’s sister), and R. Rakshita is also from this school.
Velammal has played a key role in transforming Chennai into a chess powerhouse, by training hundreds of budding players through expert coaching. Since 2005, the school has been a breeding ground for chess talents and grandmasters, but former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu J. Its institutions further developed after Jayalalitha launched the ‘7 to 17 Programme’ in 2013. Velammal won the World School Chess Championship for five consecutive years, with both Gukesh and Praggnanandha contributing to his success in 2021.
The distinguished legacy of the Velammal institutions includes S.P. Sethuraman, Leon Mendonca, K. Priyadarshan, B. Notable alumni include Adhiban, Vishnu Prasanna and many others. Velammal students regularly compete in tournaments from under-11 to under-17 level.
The rise of Chennai as the chess capital of India is no surprise, as the city has had one of the highest number of privately owned chess institutions in the country since the 1970s. The Soviet Cultural Center in the heart of Madras was once a hub for chess enthusiasts, hosting the city’s first chess club, named after 1960 world chess champion Mikhail Tal. In the 1980s, world champion Vishwanathan Anand spent hours there reading chess literature and competing with fellow players.
Although the Tal Chess Club no longer operates, Velammal and other institutions have ensured that Chennai’s chess scene remains vibrant and continues to grow. Today, there are over 60 recognized chess academies in the city, including the Chess Gurukul of GM RB Ramesh, who is Praggnanandha’s guru.
In 1986, MV Muthuramalingam established the first school in Mogappair, Chennai with only 183 students and 13 staff members. He named the institution Velammal Matriculation School in honor of his mother Velammal. Since then, the Velammal Group has expanded to 56 institutions across Chennai, Vellore, Karur, Theni and Madurai.
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