How Samay Raina's Joke Triggered Anand Mahindra To Start A Chess League
Anand Mahindra credits comedian Samay Raina for inspiring the Global Chess League, a franchise-based chess tournament that began as a joke in 2020 and is now a major international event.
- Anand Mahindra was inspired by comedian Samay Raina's chess streaming during the 2020 pandemic
- Raina challenged Mahindra to start a professional global franchise-based chess league
- Global Chess League now has a $1 million prize and a projected $40 million five-year valuation
It is not usually good for one's health to take comedians' jokes seriously, but industrialist Anand Mahindra is glad he did. Speaking at the fourth season of the Global Chess League in Bengaluru, Mahindra Group Chairman Anand Mahindra highlighted how a casual conversation with comedian Samay Raina turned into a serious platform for bringing India, and indeed the world, closer to the game of chess. Mahindra now fondly calls the venture the "most expensive joke" ever played on him.
The story dates back to 2020 during the global pandemic. Mahindra happened to tune in to an online stream where Samay Raina and chess commentator Sagar Shah were broadcasting the 2020 Chess Olympiad. While Mahindra was only seeking light entertainment, the businessman in him could not help noticing a massive surge of interest surrounding the sport.
"I saw that every 15 minutes the crowd of people watching grew larger," Mahindra was quoted as saying by Business Line.
Intrigued by the exploding digital audience, Mahindra engaged with Raina online. During their interactions, Raina threw down a challenge: why not start a professional, franchise-based global league for chess?
What began as a joke became a genuine business idea for Mahindra. International Chess Federation (FIDE) President Arkady Dvorkovich noticed the exchange on social media and reached out directly to Mahindra to ask if he was genuinely interested in launching such a project.
Mahindra was serious. Detailed discussions took place over the following months to structure the format. The initiative gained even greater credibility when five-time World Champion Viswanathan Anand stepped in to support and join the project, giving the proposed league the backing of one of the greatest figures in the sport.
Four seasons later, the Global Chess League has far outgrown the initial idea Raina pitched in 2020. The tournament now boasts an annual prize purse of USD 1 million, with a projected five-year business valuation exceeding USD 40 million.
Looking back at the journey, Mahindra joked about the high price tag of taking a comedian's proposal to heart.
"If it is a joke, then it is the most expensive joke anyone has ever played on me," he remarked with a smile.
Despite the hefty investment and effort involved, Mahindra has zero regrets about seeing Raina's challenge through to the finish line. "I am in fact enjoying the fruits of the success of that expense and effort," he added.