Eleven-year-old Bodhana Sivanandan has become Britain’s youngest-ever women’s chess champion after defeating her opponent in a play-off at the University of Warwick.
Chess grandmaster Daniel Gormally hailed her victory as “unreal”, highlighting the remarkable rise of a player who took up chess just six years ago. Bodhana has already defeated several top male players and is being described as one of Britain’s greatest chess prodigies.
Despite the growing expectations, Bodhana remains focused on achieving more. “I’m happy about the title but I want to keep going for more in the future,” she said.
Bodhana Sivanandan, 11, is already aiming to become the world’s youngest grandmaster. At the nine-day British Championships, she defeated 39-year-old grandmaster Ameet Ghasi and won the women’s title, breaking a record that had stood since 1939. Her only loss came against 17-year-old Shreyas Royal, who won the overall championship.
Bodhana discovered chess during the pandemic after finding an old chessboard at home. Her father introduced her to the game, and she quickly improved through YouTube and Chess.com tutorials. She entered her first tournament in 2021 and, a year later, won all 24 games at the European Schools Championship.
By 2023, she was competing successfully against experienced grandmasters. She now trains for one to two hours a day alongside playing the violin and piano. Her parents support her tournament travel, while experts predict she could become a future world champion.
Apart from Bodhana Sivanandan and Shreyas Royal, several young South Asian chess players are making their mark in the UK. Indian-origin British junior Supratit Banerjee earned the International Master title at 12 in 2026.
South Asians in the UK are increasingly making their mark in chess, with young players emerging across age groups. Brothers Amandeep and Adamjeet Singh impressed at the British Chess Championships, with Amandeep winning the under-8 Blitz and Rapidplay titles and Adamjeet taking the under-10 Rapidplay crown.
Nine-year-old British Tamil player Kayal Vijay was crowned the Under-9 Girls Champion at the 2026 European Schools Chess Championship in Croatia, representing England. Leicester-based Tara Tamilselvan, another young British Tamil talent, also gained attention for her performance in a major UK fast-paced chess tournament.
The community also has a strong legacy through Dharshan Kumaran, an English grandmaster of South Asian origin who won the World Under-12 Championship in 1986 and the World Under-16 title in 1991. Together, these players highlight the growing and enduring contribution of South Asians to chess in the UK.
