Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Indian billionaire admits cheating to beat chess legend Anand in charity game

An Indian billionaire has admitted to cheating in a shock win over five-time chess world champion Viswanathan Anand in an online charity event on Sunday (13).

Online brokerage firm Zerodha's co-founder Nikhil Kamath win over Anand in a 30-minute rapid game has created a controversy, with the young billionaire later saying it was for "fun and charity".


However, the next day Kamath admitted taking help of "computers" and "people analysing the game".

"It is ridiculous that so many are thinking that I really beat Vishy sir in a chess game, that is almost like me waking up and winning a 100mt race with Usain Bolt," Kamath tweeted.

"In hindsight, it was quite silly as I didn't realise all the confusion that can get caused due to this. Apologies."

Following the match, Kamath's Chess.com account was banned. Chess.com is an online platform for players across the world to play matches virtually.

The charity event was attended by celebrity guests including cricketer Yuzvendra Chahal and Bollywood actor Aamir Khan, who played against Anand and were defeated.

The 51-year-old grandmaster, who won his first world title aged 30 appeared to play down the whole matter.

"Yesterday was a celebrity simul for people to raise money It was a fun experience upholding the ethics of the game," he wrote on Twitter.

"I just played the position (on the) board and expected the same from everyone."

India's chess federation saw the incident as violating the spirit of the game.

"We don't expect anybody to get help from computers, at the national and state level we are following the protocols," the federation's secretary Bharat Chauhan told local media.

"(Kamath) was doing it for charity, he shouldn't have done. This is really bad," he added.

More For You

UK’s first major South Asian music

Homegrown marks a new moment for South Asian music talent in the UK

Instagram/playbackcreates

Playback Creates announces Homegrown as UK’s first major South Asian music development push for new talent

Highlights:

  • New platform aims to support South Asian creatives in Wolverhampton and the Black Country
  • Homegrown will mentor up to ten emerging music artists aged 16–30
  • Funded by Arts Council England with Punch Records as a key partner
  • Final live showcase scheduled for March 2026

Playback Creates has launched its new Homegrown programme, a move the organisation says will change access and opportunity for young British South Asian artists. The primary focus is South Asian music development, and there’s a clear effort to create space for voices that have not been supported enough in the industry. It comes at a time when representation and career routes are still a challenge for many new acts.

UK\u2019s first major South Asian music Homegrown marks a new moment for South Asian music talent in the UK Instagram/playbackcreates

Keep ReadingShow less