Who is Harikrishnan A Ra? All you need to know about India’s 87th chess Grandmaster

The craze of chess in India once again makes global headlines as the country gets its latest Grandmaster, 87th to be precise, in one Harikrishnan A Ra. The 23-year-old secured his final Grandmaster norm at the LA Plagne International Chess Festival in France on July 11, 2025. Hailing from Chennai, Harikrishnan became an International Master seven years ago but faced a long struggle to attain the Grandmaster title.

Speaking from La Plagne (France), Harikrishnan expressed a sigh of relief. “Feel very happy. It’s been seven years. I agree there was a huge delay to become a GM. From 2022, I have been competing regularly in tournaments, but couldn’t get the GM norms. It was really a struggle,” Harikrishnan told The Hindu on Saturday.

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Reaped success after a long wait

Harikrishnan reaped success after long perseverance. As an International Master, he competed in many tournaments but the GM tag eluded him despite coming agonisingly close at times. But the day Harikrishna was waiting for finally arrived when he drew with his countrymate P Iniyan in the final round of LA Plagne International Chess Festival to finish fourth and become India’s 87th GM.

According to Harikrishnan, he knew that he needed 1.5 points in the last two rounds to become a GM. “There was pressure and I am glad I did it,” he said. He defeated Jules Moussard of France in the eighth round and drew with Iniyan in the ninth and last round to complete his third GM norm.

Notably, Harikrishnan got his first GM-norm in the Biel International Chess Festival in 2023 in Switzerland and his second norm in the Lince Andujar Chess Open in June this year in Spain.

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Future Plans

Having attained the highest tag in the sport of Chess, Harikrishnan aims to continue playing the sport. He aims to reach an Elo rating of 2600 and plans for higher studies as well. Harikrishnan desires to pursue an MBA in the USA and holds an M.Com (Master of Commerce) degree from SRM University.