Meet the 16 Superheroes who will be playing at the Super Heroes Cup: Living a life beyond extraordinary

The Super Heroes Cup returns after 4 years - from Online tournament to over the board!

Back in 2021, we organized the first edition of the Super Heroes Cup. It was an online tournament where India's top specially abled players took part - and FM Venkata Krishna Karthik became the Champion by defeating Kishan Gangolli in the finals which went down all the way to Armageddon!

The final moments of Venkata Krishna Karthik becoming the Champion of Super Heroes Cup 2026!

This time, we are pleased to announce the return of the Super Heroes Cup 2026 for an over-the-board Knockout Chess tournament on 14th and 15th March! The event will take place at the Fern Habitat in Mundhwa, Pune, Maharashtra. You can read all about the amazing story of how Samay Raina won the Super PogChamps 2026 and went on to donate his entire prize winnings of USD 10,000 in this article! Balraj "The Gentleman" Ghai made another huge benevolent gesture - he mentioned he would like to host the event at his newly launched Habitat Studio in Pune! We are truly grateful to both Samay and Balraj for being such amazing people and helping us immensely in bringing back the Super Heroes Cup.

Details of the event

Name of the tournament: Super Heroes Cup 2026

Organized by: ChessBase India

Sponsored by: Samay Raina and Balraj Ghai

Dates: 14th and 15th of March 2026

Format: 16-player knockout event

Schedule :

• Day 1 - 14th March - Round of 16 and Quarter Finals

• Day 2 - 15th March - Semi-finals and Finals

1. Day 1 - 14th March 

   1. Round of 16

      1. Game 1 - 01:00 PM

      2. Game 2 - 02:15 PM

      3. Armageddon : 03:30 PM

   2. Quarter Finals

      1. Game 1 - 04:30 PM

      2. Game 2 - 05:45 PM

      3. Armageddon : 07:00 PM

2. Day 2 - 15th March

   1. Semi Finals

      1. Game 1 - 01:00 PM

      2. Game 2 - 02:15 PM

      3. Armageddon : 03:30 PM

   2. Finals

      1. Game 1 - 04:30 PM

      2. Game 2 - 05:45 PM

      3. Armageddon : 07:00 PM

Prize Structure:

• Winner - ₹ 1,00,000/-

• Runner Up - ₹ 75,000/-

• Third Place - ₹ 50,000/-

• Fourth Place - ₹ 40,000/-

• Fifth - Eighth Spot - ₹ 25,000/- each

• Ninth - Sixteenth Spot - ₹ 15000/- each

Time control:

• 15 minutes + 30 seconds increment (we have kept a sizeable amount of increment per move so that all specially abled players can make their moves on the board).

• 10 minutes with bidding for the Armageddon game with an increment of 10 seconds from move 40.

The list of players

As mentioned in the previous article, our criteria to select the players was - top 3 rated players + top female player + National Junior Champion - that makes it five players across three categories - visually impaired, physically challenged and deaf & mute - a total of 15 players. The final spot was decided via online qualifiers - it was a 5-round swiss tournament where 30 players took part. Shreesh Kulkarni won the tournament scoring 5.5/6 points - becoming the final player of the Super Heroes Cup 2026!

Here is the complete players list:

1. IM Shashikant Kutwal (2207) - Physically Challenged

2. Kishan Gangolli (2066) - visually impaired

3. Darpan Inani (1991) - visually impaired

4. Aryan Joshi (1986) - visually impaired

5. Darshan Kshirsagar (1938)- deaf and mute

6. Venkata Krishna Karthik (1934) - physically challenged

7. Samarth Rao (1907) - physically challenged

8. Somender BL (1896) - visually impaired

9. Shankar Ramakrishnan (1785) - physically challenged

10. Devendra Vaidya (1711) - deaf and Mute

11. Vivek Watpade (1693) - deaf and Mute

12. Ved Neeraj Phaur (1656) - visually impaired

13. Megha Chakraborty (1636) - visually impaired

14. Shreesh Kulkarni (1609) - physically challenged

15. Sharon Rachel (1601) - physically challenged

16. Iniyan Gopinathen (1492) - physically challenged

All of these players are Superheroes on and off the board, with many achievements. Below, we try to do justice to the life of these amazing people with a few lines - highlighting some of the many important points of their career!

1. IM Shashikant Kutwal (2207):

One of the stalwarts of Indian Para Chess, IM Shashikant Kutwal is the top seed of the Super Heroes Cup 2026. Born on 15th July, 1979, Shashikant is from Pune, Maharashtra. In his childhood, he used to play all kinds of sports like cricket, badminton and tennis! But after he was struck with Polio at a young age, his father decided to put him in chess so that he has a fair chance of competition with others. In his early years, it was Late Shri Joseph Dsouza and then International Master Rahul Shetty who played a big role in his development.

Shashikant has been playing Chess now for the last 33 years. There are so many achievements of Shashikant over the years, but his biggest and most important one came at when he won the IPCA World Championships (World Chess Championships for the disabled) in 2017 at Slovakia, also attaining his International Master title! Garry Kasparov is Shashikant's Chess idol - due to his wonderful attacking style. When asked what Chess means to him, Shashikant says something quite simple but deep - "Chess is everything for me, as without it I am nothing!"

Kishan Gangolli (2066):

A very well-known player in the Indian Visually Challenged players community, Kishan Gangolli was born on 2nd January 1992 at Shivamogga, Karnataka. His uncle was interested in Chess - he enrolled him into a Chess academy in Shivamogga. As it so happened, the trainer was visually impaired as well - this really helped Kishan to learn and grow in chess! His first chess event was a local tournament in Shivamogga itself. Kishan used to play 8 -10 tournaments a year, but has slowed down a little in the last couple of years.

Some of the major achievements in Kishan's illustrious career are: 4 medals in Asian Para games, and 2 Individual medals FIDE Chess Olympiad for people with disabilities. He also won 2 Individual medals in IBCA Olympiad, and one in IBCA World Team Championships! Kishan became the IBCA Asian Champion in 2017, and has become the AICFB National Championship for Visually impaired players a whopping 8 times. Vishy Anand is his idol in Chess!

In the past, there were many people who helped Kishan travel to chess tournaments. But Kishan brought about a change! In his own words, "From the past 10 years, I am trying to be independent and started travelling alone including abroad." Chess is everything to him! Below, we share Kishan's Superhero story in his own words:

From my childhood, I believed in only one thing - disability doesn't mean end of the world. I started my chess career by competing with sighted players. I did my schooling in a sighted school. There were mini challenges in different stage of life, and there were lot of ups and downs in my life. I will share one incident - in 2018, I was about to quit Chess because of the lack of support and recognition, despite doing consistently well. The person who stopped me from doing that was Sagar Shah. After that my life changed! Now I have a government job and some recognition. If I had taken that decision then, I would have regretted it my entire life!

3. Darpan Inani (1991):

Darpan Inani was born in Vadodara, Gujarat on 14th February, 1994. Chess into his life at the age of 13! Despite being completely blind (100% blind without any light perception), Darpan studied in a normal school throughout, with normal children. Darpan was doing very well academically, and would always be among the top 2 students in the class throughout my schooling right up till 12th standard. But there was no sport which he could play with his sighted counterparts! Whenever there was a sports or physical education period in school, he could not partake in sports or games with other children. When he was in 8th standard, he stumbled upon the game of Chess! In Darpan's own words, "Chess is the only game wherein a blind person can compete with a sighted person on equal footing without any modifications in rules and the playing conditions. Chess is the only game in the world wherein a visually impaired person can professionally compete with their able bodied counterparts!"

Darpan's first Chess tournament was the U-14 Vadodara District Chess tournament, which he won! That motivated him to continue playing Chess. As compared to other professional players, Darpan has played lesser number of events each year - he was playing 4-5 rating tournaments a year at the prime of his chess career. For the last 5 years, he is playing 1-2 events each year!

There are so many achievements in Darpan's Chess career, we asked him to list them! This is what he replied:

1. Won 2 gold medals for India at para Asian games, 2023 and was awarded and felicitated by the Prime minister and the then Union sports minister for this accomplishment.

2. Won the Times of India Sports Person of the year in Para Chess Category for the year 2024.

3. Youngest national Blind Chess Champion at the age of 16, won National Senior Blind Championship in 2010, the record holds till date.

4. Have achieved a peak rating of 2135, the highest ever FIDE Elo Rating to have been achieved by any visually impaired player from India till date.

5. Have finished in top 2 in several age category like U-13, U-15 and U-17 official state (selection for nationals) tournaments for sighted players and thereby officially represented Gujarat in nationals. Hold the distinction of being the only visually impaired player in India to have officially represented state in nationals in sighted having qualified in the state selections.

6. Finished runners up in the All India FIDE rated below 2200 tournament in 2013 at Ahmedabad, a sighted mainstream tournament, again the only blind player in India to have done so.

7. HDFC Life TV commercial 'Bounce Back' has been made on my life story which went on to become one of the most viewed and most popular TV commercials in 2019 in the country.

8. Have represented India several times in World Blind Championships, World Blind Junior Championships (bronze medalist in World Junior Blind Championship) and World Blind chess Olympiads.

A huge role in Darpan's career was played by his mother. In his own words, Darpan shares:

My mother invariably travels to every chess tournament that I play. She has been my companion to every chess tournament that I have ever played anywhere in the world. She has been the one who has stayed away from home for me for several months together when I used to play in Europe. She takes care of everything right from cooking to writing my scoresheet in the tournament. She doesn't understand chess much, but she sits there for 4 hours writing the score sheet for me and assisting me with the time on the chess clock. She had never been abroad before 2018. In 2018, when I first started playing tournaments in the European circuit, it was for the first time that she travelled for the first time to another country, in fact another continent. She has been a constant support for all my chess tournaments.

Vishy Anand is Darpan's idol in chess, right from his childhood! Darpan had the opportunity to meet him when he became the youngest national blind chess champion in 2010. He shares this wonderful message to us about his passionate love for Chess:

Chess means everything to me. It inspires me to compete with people equally, without barriers. Everything I’ve achieved today is because of chess. Thanks to this wonderful game, I’m here at the Superheroes Cup - meeting remarkable people like Sagar sir, Samay Raina and others, who have contributed so much to Indian chess, especially for the disabled chess.

4. Aryan Joshi (1986):

Born on 13th December 2001, Aryan Joshi is from Mumbai. Chess entered his life at home in Dombivli when Aryan was about 10 years old! He used to sit and watch his father Bhalchandra Joshi, and brother Omkar play. Even though his vision was limited , Aryan realized he could "see" the board in his mind! Bhalchandra noticed Aryan could remember where all the pieces were without looking, and that’s when he started teaching his son the basics. What began as a family pastime, quickly became Aryan's way of engaging with the world!

Aryan's first major competitive experience was the National Junior Championship for the blind, where he finished 5th. It was a massive stepping stone that gave him the confidence to pursue the game seriously! The most special achievement for Aryan was winning the Individual Bronze Medal on Board 1 at the World Chess Olympiad for the blind. It was his first international medal, and he became the first visually impaired Indian to win a medal on the top board!

Aryan's father traveled with him during his beginnings. Today, he mostly travels to tournaments on his own, but his family is always there to support! When asked about his idol in Chess, Aryan says: "I don’t have a single idol. Instead, I try to learn from the best players and adapt their strengths to my game. Some of the players I look up to are Viswanathan Anand Sir for his incredible longevity and contribution to Indian chess, Magnus Carlsen for his relentless precision, and Bobby Fischer for his creative genius. I try to take the best qualities from each of them!"

Before COVID-19, Aryan was playing around 6-8 tournaments a year. Since joining IIM Indore for his MBA, the number reduced a little - after that, he could only take part in the Asian Para Games and a few inter-college events. Aryan now plans to get back and play around 5 tournaments a year - his next event is the World Team Championship for the Visually Impaired in Montenegro.

We share Aryan's Superhero story in his own words below:

I was born visually impaired and come from a humble background. In the beginning, I struggled to find social acceptance and good training. My family was always there for me, and they are the reason I have been able to achieve what I have.

I have represented India in more than 10 international events and won three international medals. I am also a national-level swimmer with around 65 medals from state and national competitions. Academically, I earned my MBA from IIM Indore, and I now work as a Group A officer in the Sports Department of the Maharashtra government.

I believe that if you have the right mindset and focus on the things you can control, anything is possible. It is about taking action in the right direction and staying consistent.

5. Darshan Kshirsagar (1938):

A well-known player in the Indian Deaf Chess players community, Darshan is the Assistant technical director of Chess for the All India Sports Council for the deaf, and is one of the highest rated Deaf players in India at the moment!

6. FM Venkata Krishna Karthik (1934):

The defending Champion of Super Heroes Cup 2026, Venkata Krishna Karthik was born on 18th November 1986 at Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh. In his own words, Chess was a blessing into his life - thanks to his friend Daitha Haranath who got him started in Chess! Krishna Industrial Exhibition Chess tournament was the first chess event he played, back in 2001. The two people who have been instrumental in Venkata's chess journey are his father, Sri KVLN Murthy and his coach, Mr. Shaik Kasim. In Venkata's own words, "They are my true well wishers and very much concerned for me!"

Chess is life and breath to Venkata. His idol in Chess is Alexander Alekhine! Among many of his amazing chess achievements, the one closest to his heart is winning the Gold medal in the Asian Para Games in 2024.

7. CM Samarth Rao (1907):

Born on 1st October 1999, Samarth is from Honnavar, Uttara Kannada, Karnataka. Samarth's mother Vinuta is his 1st Chess Trainer! In his own words, he shares: "While in 6th std, my mother saw me alone near the entrance door of the school - I was watching others playing in the school ground. My mother by seeing this, told me to learn chess or carrom - then your friends will join you to play with you. So she tried to train chess and carrom. But I was comfortable with Chess, and I learnt it fast - I was ready to win against my mother soon!"

In July 2013, Samarth participated in the U-25 Karnataka state chess championship. That was his first experience - he scored 4 points out of 9 rounds! The organizer was impressed with his passion of chess, and gave him a special consolation special prize This motivated him to play more and more tournaments! Samarth has played more than 150 tournament till date - he plays around 10 tournaments a year!

When asked about the people who supported Samarth in his journey, this is what he had to say:

My father Jagadhish Rao is my backbone of Chess Achievements - he supported my entire chess journey. I was helped by Mr. Sagar Shah from the ChessBase India team by selecting me for the Dennis Kow scholarship of Rs. 51000 to participate in 2017 WJCC at USA for players with disabilities. Syndicate Bank , Tamami and Lions club Manipal, Kannada Sangho Miami USA and Sports Authority of India through CFPD AND AICF sponsored me to participate in the tournament. I took coaching by Sri Vinay kumar Hiremath Sirsi, Prasad Hegde Sirsi, Sri Jyotiprakasam from Madurai, R Narayan, Trichy, Smt Srinidhi Spripati from Chennai, Mr. Swaraj Palit from Jharkhand, and Sri Kapil Lohan. At present, Mr. Ajith M P of Mysore is my coach!

The biggest achievement of Samarth's career came in 2017, when played in USA at the World Junior Chess championship for players with disabilities. Samarth got the Silver Medal there! In IPCA World Individual Chess Championships, Samarth got the Bronze medal! Samarth increased his Elo rating by 237 points there, and was also awarded with Candidate Master (CM) Title.

Samarth's Chess idol is Vishy Anand! In 2015, Samarth got to meet Anand in Trichy for getting the Bronze medal in the IPCA World Individual Chess Championship held at Slovakia. In his own words, "Chess is my Life. Even though I studied Mcom (Masters in Commerce), I got my livelihood by Chess. Because of my World and International medals, I got a job in "India Post" under Sports Quota!"

Here is Samarth's Superhero story in his own words:

I was a premature baby with cerebral palsy, delayed milestone in activities. However my parents face lot of struggle to reach this level. I underwent implant semlaras surgery in 2008.

I went to Kannada medium normal school. In high school and college, I took scribe for board exams. My sister Sanvi Rao was my scribe for PUC B. Com and M. Com degree examinations! She is 7 years younger than me, even though she managed to write exams and secured more than 85% in all exams.

In 2014 I have participated in fide tournament in bangalore where mr. Jyotiprakasam observed my games and guided my father to take to ipca world individual chess championship 2015 in europe. Mr. G k irutayaraj of trichy guided me to participate in ipca world individual chess championship . And in the first world championship I got bronze medal in junior category.

One memorable event happened in mysuru of karnataka during 2014. Myself played against present world champion mr. D gukesh (8years) his rating was 1200+ I was unrated due to physical problem my father sit side by me with arbiter's permission. But gukesh starts weeping because of my father sit with me. Then gukesh father came and understand the situation and tried to convince gukesh, but he continued same, then with arbiter's permission he kept his board side by him and played. In the middle of the game gukesh asked draw but I denied his offer, at the end I lost that game.

In 2015, 2016, 2017,2018,2019 I have participated in ipca world individual chess championship in europe countries like slovakia (3 times), serbia, czech republic, and usa (2times) and I got 2 silver medal in usa, 3 bronze and 1gold medal in europe. In 2024 july silver medal in armenia and silver medal in kyrgyzstan in nov 2024 in asian chess championship for players with disabilities.

I was in 2022 national champion in specially abled chess in tumkur karnataka. In 2024 tata steel 4th specially abled national chess championship I got gold medsl in jharkhand. In 2025 february, I got a job in india post under sports quota.

In february I have represented regional sports board bengaluru in all india civil service chess tournament- team and individual championship.

In team I scored 5.5 out of 6 rounds, our team got 13th place. In individual championship I scored 7 out of 9 rounds and in final ranking I stood at 5th place. I have been awarded gold medal for best specially abled player.

And also represented karnataka circle in all india postal paragames 2025-26 at bhilai, chattisgarh from 27 to 28 feb 2026.

I did 4.5 out of 5 rounds and became champion in all india postal para chess tournament. Chess gave me life, I love chess!

8. Somender B L (1896):

Born on 1st of July in 2002, Somender BL is from Delhi. He has been playing Chess since his school days! Somender played his first Chess tournament at the Tyagraj Stadium in Delhi back in 2015. He plays 8-10 tournaments each year! His biggest achievement till date is winning Bronze medal in the Para Games 2023 at China.

Vishy Anand is the source of motivation for Somender! He mentions that Rajendra singh Chauhan helps him in travel - for training, Prasenjit Dutta from Matrix Chess Academy in Delhi is a constant support. Below, we share Somender's Superhero story in his own words:

I belong to a very poor family background. My mother and father expired when I was only 5 years old ,and I was raised by my uncle and aunt, which encourages me to work hard. My parents are my all time motivation, and in my school life my teachers and principal supported me to reach this height!

9. Shankar Ramakrishan (1785):

Born on 28th October 2001, Shankar is from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu. His dad taught him when I was 7 years old, and he always lost against him. Shankar badly wanted to win, that fueled his love for chess! Winning the Silver Medal in wheelchair category in the National Chess Championship for the differently abled is Shankar's biggest achievement till date. His mom and brother help Shankar with travels! Shankar's coach is Gireman Ja. In his own words, "Mr. Gireman is coaching me and helping me on and off the board. If not for him, I'm nothing right now".

Chess is life for Shankar - his chess idol is the 2nd World Champion Emmanuel Lasker! We share Shankar's Superhero story in his own words:

Challenges are plenty. Physically, financially and emotionally, but my family, coaches and friends make sure I don't think about any of it and I keep playing chess. For that I'm eternally grateful.

10. Devendra Vaidya (1711)

Born on 14th May, 1989, Devendra Vaidya is from Ahilyanagar, Maharashtra. Communication was difficult for Devendra, as he was deaf. His elder brother introduced him to chess! In his own words, "One day he placed a chessboard in front of me and told me that this game is called chess. He explained the pieces, the rules, and how the game is played. From that moment I became interested in chess, and slowly it became an important part of my life."

We share with you Devendra's chess journey in his own words:

My first chess tournament was in 2011, at the Maharashtra State Deaf Chess Championship held in Pune, where I secured 1st place. Because of this result, I was selected to play in the National Deaf Chess Championship in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, where I finished 2nd in India. I was also selected to participate in a tournament in Uzbekistan, but unfortunately I could not attend due to some important reasons. After a few years, I restarted my chess journey again in 2024 and achieved several important results: March 2024 – 1st place at the National Deaf Chess Championship in Patna July 2024 – Represented India at the ICCD World Deaf Chess Championship in Belgrade, Serbia July 2024 – 1st place at the National Deaf Selection Trials in Indore December 2024 – Won a Bronze Medal for India at the 10th Asia Pacific Deaf Games in Malaysia January 2025 – 2nd place at the 25th National Deaf Chess Championship in Mysuru September 2025 – Won a Bronze Medal for India at the Asian Deaf Chess Championship in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

Currently, depending on opportunities and support, Devendra plays around 4 to 6 tournaments in a year! His Chess idol is Vishy Anand. His elder brother helps him a lot from the start. For his training and practice, International Master Jayant Gokhale is his trainer! Devendra also receives support from Mr. Narendra Firodia, President of the Chess Association, and Mrs. Savita Kale from Akanksha Divyang Rehabilitation Center. They help him with travel support and providing training materials! Chess is a way to express himself for Devendra. We share Devendra's Superhero story with you in his own words below:

Being deaf brings many challenges in daily life and communication. However, chess helped me overcome many of these difficulties. With hard work, dedication, and belief in myself, I continued to play and improve my game. Representing India and winning medals is a very proud moment for me. My journey shows that even with challenges, if you work hard and never give up, you can achieve your dreams. That is my superhero story.

11. Vivek Watpade (1693):

Born on 31st December 1999, Vivek Watpade is from Nashik. He has a very interesting story of how he begun to play chess, here it is in his own words:

When I was young around 6 years old, I loved playing cricket very much. But once I had an accident, and the doctor told me that I would not be able to run much. I felt very sad at that time. One day I was sitting in my room and my sister and cousin were playing chess. When I saw the move of the knight, I became very curious about the game. Then I told my father that I wanted to learn chess. Within five days, my father enrolled me in a chess academy, and from there my journey in chess began.

Vivek played his first chess tournament in 2008. He plays 20-30 tournaments each year! His biggest achievement so far is winning international medals for India, including a bronze at the Asia Pacific Deaf Games 2024 and two bronze medals at the Asia Deaf Chess Championship 2025. He also won national gold medals in the deaf Category in 2025 and 2026.

Since his childhood, Vivek's first chess coach was Prashant Pathak, who trained until 2013 and built his foundation in chess. After that, he started training with Vinod Bhagwat, who helped to improve Vivek's competitive level. Later, when Vivek wanted to play deaf chess tournaments, Darshan Kshirsagar came into his life - another participant in this event! He guided Vivek towards deaf chess events and supported him a lot. His idol in Chess is Magnus Carlsen! We share Vivek's Superhero story with you in his own words below:

My superhero story is my journey in chess. When I was young, I loved playing cricket, but after an accident the doctor said I would not be able to run much. It was a difficult moment for me. One day I saw my sister and cousin playing chess, and when I noticed the knight’s unique move, I became very curious about the game. That moment changed everything, and I started learning chess seriously .

As a deaf player, my journey was not easy. I had to work harder and stay focused every day. In 2020, I had the honour of representing India as part of Team India C in the Online Disability Chess Olympiad. During the COVID period, two of my international tournaments were cancelled. I was also selected for the Deaflympics in 2024, but due to financial issues the players’ expenses were not covered, so I could not participate. It was a very disappointing time, but my friends encouraged me not to give up and told me that one day I would rise and shine.

I kept practicing and played more tournaments. In 2024 my life changed when I played my first major international event in Serbia at the World Deaf Chess Championship. After that my journey improved greatly. I became a three-time Maharashtra Deaf Chess State Champion, won two bronze medals at the Asia Deaf Chess Championship 2025, and won back-to-back national gold medals in 2025 and 2026. and also won a bronze medal at the Asia Pacific Deaf Games. I also had the honour of becoming Team India captain. This journey of hard work and determination is my superhero story.

12. Ved Neeraj Phaur (1656)

Born on 20th November 2014, Ved is the youngest participant of the tournament. He is from Chandrapur, Maharashtra! Initially, Chess was just a sport for him - but now it has become a part of life! Ved played his first tournament in June 2024 at Alandi, Pune. The biggest achievment for him so far was winning the AICFB National Junior Championship 2025, and qualifying for IBCA World Juniors 2026! Bobby Fischer is the idol of this little star. We share a heartfelt message from Ved's mother below:

Ved is premature baby. His birth weight 680grams. He was in incubation for 2 months. Because of prematurity he had ROP. When he was 4 months old his birth weight was 1.5 kg his first eye surgery was done. He had autism also. To build up his confidence I started to teach him chess.

His motor skills are not fully developed so he faces some hardship to tie shoelace, button and unbutton his shirt, tie the drawstring of pajamas.

Chess boost his confidence. Earlier he can't talk with anyone. Earlier classmates, autofriends tease him now they are friends only because of chess. Chess gives him confidence, purpose for living.

13. Megha Chakraborty (1636) - visually impaired

Born on 3rd December 2002, Megha Chakraborty is from Kolkata, West Bengal. She picked up Chess from her School seniors when she was around 10 years old, in her school hostel! After that, Nemai Das, her first coach, who is also visually impaired—taught her chess at school. From there, her interest kept growing. She played her first tournament in Nabadwip, West Bengal, in 2013. Every year Megha aims to play at least 10 tournaments, but it usually ends up being only 3 or 4 rated events due to lack of sponsorship and coaching. Currently, she is also training few kids!

Megha won two medals at the 2018 Jakarta Para Asian Games - team silver in rapid and team bronze in classical. She is also a three-time national women’s champion for the visually impaired. Recently, Megha finished 20th at the Tata Steel Chess Festival India Open Women’s Rapid tournament! Finishing 20th isn’t a headline result, but competing with sighted players and receiving prize is a huge feat.

Chess means everything to Megha. Her Chess idol is Vishy Anand! It inspires her to compete with people equally, without barriers. She says "Thanks to this wonderful game, I’m here at the Superheroes Cup—meeting remarkable people like Sagar sir, Samay Raina and others, who have contributed so much to Indian chess, especially for the disabled chess." We share Megha's Superhero story with you below in her own words:

I do not consider myself a superhero. Every human being faces struggles in daily life, and for those of us with physical disabilities, these challenges can often be felt more intensely. I am also a part of that reality. Living with limited vision means I encounter many difficulties in my everyday life. However, I try to face them by treating each problem as a challenge that I must overcome.

In my view, every person is a superhero in their own way. Whether someone is abled or disabled does not truly matter. Each individual carries their own struggles and defines them in their own way. What matters most is the courage to keep moving forward despite those challenges.

14. Shreesh Kulkarni (1609):

Born on 21st August 2005, Shreesh won the Qualifiers tournament to seal his spot at the Super Heroes Cup. He will be playing in his hometown of Pune, Maharashtra! At the tender age of 3/4 years, Shreesh saw his father and uncle playing chess, which piqued his interest - he was enrolled in a chess academy shortly thereafter. Till 4th grade, Shreesh was a much more regular chess player - he plays about 10 tournaments in a year now.

Shreesh's biggest achievement till date is winning Silver and Bronze medals at the International tournament for players with disabilities. He has also scored wins against IMs and WIMs in Rapid Chess! Vishy Anand is his idol in chess - and recently he looks up to GM Akshayraj Kore who achieved his GM title after completing his engineering degree. His mom and dad travel often with him in tournaments, which provides him with a lot of support! We share with you Shreesh's Superhero story below in his own words:

I am a person with locomotor disability since birth. But having immense sporting spirit attained by watching lots of cricket as a toddler, I turned to chess to try and explore the sport I could play without physical exertion. But after 4 to 5 years of coaching and tournaments, I took a 8 year long break from chess which started because I underwent a few surgeries and then because of Boards and JEE exams. However the chess player within me couldn't be suppressed and I stayed in touch with the game via occasional online blitz games. I found the right chess environment and friends who shared the love for the game after I got admission in IIT Bombay.

Since then, I have resumed playing OTB chess tournaments and have pushed my rating from 1470 to 1609 in classical and from unrated to 1599 and 1533 in rapid and blitz in just a year. I hope to continue climbing up the rating ladder while also pursuing my engineering degree at IIT BOMBAY.

15. Sharon Rachel Aby (1601)

Born on 28th May 2009, Sharon Rachel Aby is from Chennai. In her own words, "Chess came to not as one of many choices, rather it came as the only choice to me. When the normal students went to play out during the PT/ Games period, I was left alone in the class. During one of those times my mother introduced me to chess and soon I developed the liking for the game. The rest is history!" The first chess tournament Sharon participated in was conducted by Kailash Chess Academy (U-8 Category) in the year 2017 at Chennai. She plays around 15 tournaments a year now!

Winning Gold at the 2nd Asian Chess Championship for players with disabilities at Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan in 2024 is Sharon's biggest achievement. But the most memorable tournament for her, she says is participating in Asian Para Games at Hangzhou, China in 2023! Her Mom and My Dad help her travel to tournaments. Sharon's coach Jennitha Anto helps her prepare for the games - Jennitha Anto is 6 times world IPCA champion! We share Sharon's Superhero story in her own words below:

Chess needs a lot of of practice and sitting in the same posture for long hauls during practice and in tournaments especially the classic tournaments is challenging. Chess made me what I am today. Identifying tournament venues which are wheelchair accessible is one challenge we come across many a times. Travelling by train is another challenge. Thanking all the Chess Enthusiasts and good souls who conduct and organize inclusive tournaments. I must also thank Mr. Samay Raina and Mr. Balraj Ghai who made this event happen along with Chess Base India. You are calling us Super Heroes but YOU all are REAL SUPER HEROES.

16. Iniyan Gopinathen (1492)

Iniyan was born at Chennai, Tamil Nadu on 13th January, 2011. Chess came into Iniyan’s life when he was around 10 years old. His father believed that chess would help him develop strong thinking and crisis-management skills in life. With this thought, he encouraged Iniyan to learn the game. Through his friend Mr. D. Anand, Iniyan was introduced to Mr. Ravikumar, a talented chess coach, who started guiding Iniyan. From that point, chess became an important part of his learning and growth!

Iniyan’s first chess tournament was the Little England Chess Tournament held at Hosur. Since then, he has been actively participating in competitions. On average, he plays about 3 to 5 FIDE rated tournaments every year, apart from several state-level and district-level tournaments! Iniyan's biggest achievements so far are winning the Gold Medal in the National Under-15 Classical Chess Championship, and winning Silver Medals in the World Championships in both Rapid and Blitz formats. As for any Chess idols, Iniyan says " I admire many top players, but I mainly focus on improving my own game every day. My goal is to build my own style and become a stronger player through hard work and learning."

Iniyan's father supports him in travelling to tournaments and training programs. He encourages Iniyan a lot and believes that chess will help me develop discipline, patience, and strong decision-making skills in life. We share Iniyan's Superhero Story in his own words below:

My chess journey began when my father introduced me to the game at the age of 10. He believed that chess would help me develop strong thinking and crisis-management skills in life. With his encouragement, I started learning under the guidance of my coach, Mr. Ravikumar. From my first tournament onwards, chess became a passion for me.

Every day I work to improve my game by practicing, studying positions, and learning from my mistakes. Balancing school, training, and travelling for tournaments is sometimes challenging, but these challenges make me stronger and more determined. My goal is to keep improving and represent my country proudly through chess.

We will be covering the Super Heroes Cup 2026 end to end - stay tuned for photos, videos, interviews, reports, and livestreams from Pune!

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