Three years ago, at the 2022 FIDE Olympiad in Mahabalipuram near Chennai, Harika Dronavalli was a part of the Indian women’s team that won their first-ever Olympiad medal – a bronze. Back then, she was the story, competing as she was while heavily pregnant, with the organisers having an ambulance and Harika’s doctor on standby throughout the event.
Cut to 2025 and Harika, 34, is back in Chennai again for her second participation at the Chennai Grand Masters tournament in the Challengers section. She may not be the story of the event anymore, but this event will forever hold a special place in her heart. For the first time, Harika’s daughter Hanvika, who turns three in a few weeks, is experiencing her mother’s world around the chess board.
🥉🇮🇳🙌🏻
.
.
📸: @FIDE_chess official olympiad website pic.twitter.com/PldBnr1lAa– Harika Dronavalli (@HarikaDronavali) August 10, 2022
“I made her move sit on the board, the pieces. That felt good,” Harika tells ESPN. “It’s been 25 years since I started playing chess in the international arena. It’s a nice feeling that my daughter is coming and witnessing what I am doing in my life.”
The experience of having her daughter around is new. She said that she didn’t know how the toddler’s presence would change her routines pre-game, but she was willing to take the plunge here in Chennai, saying she wanted to try something new, and with its proximity to her home (in Hyderabad), the location was perfect to do so.
“I think any mother can relate to this,” she says. “Guilt happens when you leave your child back. I would love to have her everywhere. The weather, and food won’t be the same, and it is still a lot of hassle. I’m happy she could witness my life in a way. These chances only come because we’re playing such a strong tournament in our country.”
There was a little bit of a scare before the tournament even began, due to a fire at the hotel where the tournament is happening. ESPN learnt from tournament organisers MGD1 that Harika was briefly worried due to having her daughter around, but any fears were quickly alleviated by the organisers themselves.
“Not Arjun definitely. I have seen Gukesh in Delhi when I got my daughter to meet the Prime Minister. I was very surprised with the way he handled kids, I genuinely didn’t know, so I was very surprised. So I would say Gukesh.”
Harika on who among her fellow chess stars would a good babysitter
Harika has lost her opening two games in the Challengers section – against Diptayan Ghosh and P Iniyan – but she says her pre-tournament expectations were only to try and see where she stood amid such a strong field even in the Challengers section.
“I’m playing with strong, young Grandmasters. It’s okay, even if I play good or bad, I just want to have fun, that’s it.”
It has been a sensational year already for Indian women’s chess, but Harika isn’t letting that set expectations for her. Two Indians have already qualified for the women’s Candidates, in FIDE World Cup winner Divya Deshmukh and runner-up Koneru Humpy. Harika was all praise for Divya, saying it was a massive achievement to be there and to win gold. However, she had special appreciation for Humpy, who she said she related to.
“I know how commendable [it is] for Humpy to reach the final. With having a kid, family, so many responsibilities, the way she fought was just amazing,” she says. “This is something that people should really understand, it is much more difficult for Humpy with her circumstances to still be there and be in the final.”
With her daughter watching her play and chess’s new-found attention in the last few years in India, Harika is reveling in a spotlight that she has craved since she was young.
“I used to reach the semifinals, losing in Armageddon, win bronze medals, and there would be no recognition,” Harika says, “but I never felt dejected. I knew it will eventually grow. I believed our sport will also grow. I’m happy that at least I’m somewhere near to that era, and it didn’t happen after I finished my career.”
