Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay felicitated Indian Grandmaster Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and presented him with a cash reward of ₹50 lakh on behalf of the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu. The 20-year-old chess prodigy scored a historic victory at the Norway Chess 2026 tournament.
Vijay plays chess with Praggnanandhaa
Speaking to news agency ANI, R Praggnanandhaa shared that the Chief Minister also played a game of chess with him. “I was asked to bring a chessboard, and I played a game with the Chief Minister. I never expected that he would actually play chess with me. We played for about 15 minutes, and I won the game. He was very supportive and encouraging,” he said.
Sharing details of the honour on X, the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) wrote, “Honourable Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Thiru. Joseph Vijay, today at the Chief Secretariat, presented a cheque for 50 lakh rupees as a prestigious cash incentive to Grandmaster R Praggnanandhaa, who became the first Indian to win the title in the Norway Chess 2026 series held in the Norwegian capital, Oslo, thereby creating a historic milestone, and played a game of chess with Grandmaster Praggnanandhaa.” The felicitation ceremony was held at the Chief Secretariat in Chennai.
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Praggnanandhaa scripted history on Friday by claiming the Norway Chess 2026 crown in Oslo after defeating Germany’s Vincent Keymer in the tenth and final round. The Chennai-born Grandmaster finished ahead of a star-studded field that featured World No. 1 Magnus Carlsen, reigning world champion Dommaraju Gukesh, Alireza Firouzja, Wesley So and Vincent Keymer.
Last month, C Joseph Vijay was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu in the presence of family members and hundreds of supporters. Meanwhile, his final film as an actor, Jana Nayagan, has remained stalled for more than five months. Vijay has joined the league of iconic actor-turned-leaders like NT Rama Rao, MG Ramachandran, and J Jayalalithaa. In February 2024, Vijay announced that he would contest in the 2026 elections. He launched the TVK party and held his first public rally in October 2024. Since then, the actor has toured many regions of TN to hold rallies and share his manifesto directly with the people.
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