My Biography

The Beginning, and my Extracurriculars

Hi there!👋

This is Rishi Vijayan! I was born on January 23 2011! I live in Chennai, India!

I could say, I was too keen in things, from a very young age, even before I started playing chess.

I learnt drawing, singing, playing keyboard, playing Chenda Melam (it's a traditional instrument in Kerala), while also indulging myself in Karate and Silambam.

I found huge success in Chenda Melam! I completed my Arangettam in October 2018, alongside Mattanoor Sankarankutty Marar, and actor Jayaram! Soon, I was part of the Guinness World Record Event in 2019, breaking the record of the largest Chenda Melam ensemble!

And, I am a good student at school too (academically), not too good to be called a topper, but good enough to be called ‘above average’, or so I believe.

My Chess Journey

I picked up my first chess piece around in 2018-19, and my mom taught me the rules. At that time, I didn't know what I was playing, I just played - had fun!😄

Soon, COVID strikes, and of course, chess became an entertainment for me! I was among the millions who entered chess websites during COVID!😁 I do still remember the date, 27 April 2020 - my first chess account, in the ChessKid website!

I wasn't too fascinated about the game, and just played for passing my time when I was bored. I was hovering around 900 and 1000 during the time!

I remember, I used to keenly memorise opening traps, and then play it online, nothing matches the fun it gave me when it worked!🤌

In late 2024, two years since I switched to chess.com, I started to feel more interested in the game, and I wanted to be a competitive player. I was around 1300 in rapid in chess.com. I joined a chess academy, trained hard, and soon progressed to 1500 by December, and 1900 by May 2025! I was feeling like I was the top of the world!

Then, came my first FIDE rated classical chess tournament. July 18-20 2025, 30+30 time format! The event gave me my initial FIDE rating of 1449!🥳

My FIDE profile - https://ratings.fide.com/profile/88145557

After that, my chess dreams had a pause, in an unexpected way!!

The Setback

I was spending a lot of time in chess, I mean, a lot! I would sit hours and hours with a board and a chess book. This had one major problem. Academically, at school, I was tearing apart.

It was Class 10, an important year, with my Boards coming up! I didn't give much priority to studies. The result? I scored around 80% in my quarterly.

My parents lost it! It wasn't what they had expected me to do. They hoped for more. They saw my time spent in chess as a distraction, not passion! To them, pausing chess seemed the right thing to do. Perhaps it was, but I wasn't too happy with the decision.

Fast forward to February 2026, it's now my Class 10 Boards. I'm locked in, aiming for a 95% score. I did my exams well, but not upto a 95% score. My result came out - 92%! Not bad, but not the best I could have done too!

Plus, we've another Boards for improving our scores, in May! I believe I can very well reach 95% in that! If you're reading this, wish me luck! :)

My Achievements (in Chess)

I've lots and lots to learn yet, and my achievements in chess are very minimal! (Excluding rating achievements)

• A trophy for finishing 7th in a state level chess tournament at Ranipet! (2024)

• Finished second at my apartment’s New Year chess tournament! (2024)

• Finished second at my school's chess tournament! (2024)

• Finished first at my apartment's chess tournament! (2025)

• Finished second at my school's chess tournament! (2025)

• Finished third at my club's chess tournament! (2025)

• Won my club's chess tournament! (2025)

• Finished first at my apartment's chess tournament! (2026)

This is me, after winning my club's chess tournament!

My Future in Chess

Currently at 1449, I look to improve my classical rating to a 1600-1800 by the end of the year at least! I've around 6-8 tournaments coming up this year! I hope I do well!💪 [I'll update about my chess tournaments in my blogs too! Do check out!]

If you've read it this far, thank you for reading, have a great day! And, I believe you can achieve your chess/life/personal goals too!💪

Have a nice day!

[Last updated: May 1 2026]

TotalChessWisdom