Kerala-based international chess players offer online training for children and adults

Playing chess can make you smarter; as opposed to the perception that only the smart can play chess. A bunch of international chess players from Kerala, also childhood friends, have been dispelling myths about chess and helping children find joy in the game. 

Eight Times Eight (8X8), a Kochi-based online global chess academy they founded in 2021, has so far trained over 3,000 students between five and 15 years of age from over 30 countries (including the US, the UK and Canada).

Athul Krishna S, Adesh Joshi, Arijith M, Abhijith M, Manu Manikandan and Chandar Raju met at a children’s chess tournament in 2005 and have been friends ever since.

The idea of starting a training platform began when a relative approached Athul with a request during Covid-19 (in 2020). “A relative asked me if I could teach her child chess because he was addicted to social media,” Athul says.

This led to a discussion among the friends and they launched an online chess training programme for children, while they were still in college, in 2021. They were surprised by the positive feedback from the parents. Some of the parents even pointed out how the lessons had helped their children improve their focus and attention. “Especially in this age of online gaming and social media, parents feel that this is a great way to engage children creatively,” says Adesh.  

They soon had over 50 students learning under them and they decided to formalise their efforts. 

By March 2022, the team raised ₹35 lakhpre-seed funding at a ₹1.6 crore valuation from Artem Art of Consulting, an investment consulting firm (led by IIM graduates Shamin Sahar and Zubin Kabeer). While the investors helped them structure their business for scaling, setting strategic goals, and improving operations, including defining roles and responsibilities, the six-member team formulated the course that covered beginner, intermediate and advanced levels. Eight Times Eight became a private limited company in August 2022. 

While Adesh, Arijith, Abhijith and Chandar are lawyers, Athul is an architect and Manu did his Msc in Mathematics. However, they are fully invested in the company now. 

“The idea is not just to mould chess players for tournaments, but also to instil in them a genuine love for the game,” says Adesh. Chess facilitates holistic development of a child. From improving memory to concentration and pattern recognition, it helps in overall personality development, he adds.

Arijith, who started playing at the age of eight, says he has been on a journey with chess for 18 years and is now happy being able to train. “India has earned a reputation in chess internationally. Among the top 10 in the world, at least four are from India,” Arijith adds. Especially with grandmasters Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, Gukesh Dommaraju and Arjun Erigaisi, there is an increased interest among parents and children to learn and master chess, Arijith says.

Eight Times eight operates with a team of over 45 FIDE (International Chess Federation)-rated trainers, offering group and individual classes. 

At the beginners’ level, the students are introduced to the game. “To the really young students, the rules of the game are laid out in the form of stories. This is one way to get the children interested in the game,” says Adesh. In five to six months, the student would be encouraged to take part in tournaments. The academy would direct the students to the tournaments that are taking place in their regions. 

Many of their students have won laurels too. Advait Sankar from Florida earned the title of National Master in the USA, while Aaranya R from Tamil Nadu became the National Under-7 Chess Champion in 2024.  

The courses are not time-bound. “There is no end to learning, the more you learn, the better you become. There are students who have been with us for over one year,” adds Adesh. 

Eight Times Eight also offers individual classes for adults. “There is no age limit to learning chess. Just as it helps children, learning chess is beneficial for adults, too,” says Arijith.