The 6th edition of the Pursue Your Chess Scholarship has awarded financial support to three promising young Indian chess players: Sriram Adarsh Uppala, Prishita Gupta, and Aamuktha Guntaka. This initiative, the longest-running program of the HelpChess Foundation, began six years ago and has now aided 12 players in total. Funded by chess enthusiast Ashwin Subramanian, the scholarships aim to overcome financial barriers in competitive chess.
The Pursue Your Chess Scholarship, a cornerstone of the HelpChess Foundation run by ChessBase India, supports young talents facing financial hurdles in chess. Launched six years ago with Rs. 50,000 for one player, it has grown to help nine recipients previously, with this year's additions bringing the total to 12. In 2024-25, the foundation raised Rs. 1.6 crore from the chess community to support 32 players across India.
Ashwin Subramanian, a software engineer and chess photographer, defines the scholarship's success as "providing crucial financial support when a player’s talent is at risk of being suppressed by financial constraints." He emphasizes enabling access to better coaches, tournaments, or study tools, shifting players from "hoping to play" to "focusing on learning and growth." Past beneficiaries have achieved milestones, such as Sammed Shete becoming an International Master (IM) and earning a Grandmaster (GM) norm, Shahil Dey securing two GM norms, and Harikrishnan A. Ra attaining GM status.
This edition awards Rs. 1,00,000 to IM Sriram Adarsh Uppala from Hyderabad, who crossed 2460 Elo last year, won bronze at the World Youth Under-18 Championship, gold at the National Under-17, and his first GM norm at the Farago Ivan Memorial GM Tournament. He plans to use it for international travel toward his GM title and 2600+ rating.
Prishita Gupta receives Rs. 50,000. Starting chess at age six, she finished seventh in her 2017 Under-7 National debut and has held World No. 1 rankings in U-14 and U-15 girls' categories, now fifth per February 2026 FIDE list. Influenced by her table tennis-playing sister Kaashvi, she aims for 2400 Elo and Woman Grandmaster title, using funds for training.
Aamuktha Guntaka gets Rs. 25,000. Beginning during COVID-19, she rose from a 1035 rating in her 2022 debut to earning a Woman International Master norm at the 2025 Tegernsee Open, gold in rapid at Western Asia Youth, and team bronze at Women's National. Inspired by Judit Polgar, she targets GM status and world championship, funding tournament fees and travel.
Subramanian reflects that success lies in recipients' growth and milestones, noting, "Ultimately, Pursue Your Chess ‘works’ when it turns potential into opportunity and opportunity into progress." The foundation, a registered trust with tax benefits, invites contributions to nurture India's next chess stars.
