Women underrepresented in Indian chess, only 2 woman grandmasters

Globally, there are 1770 male grandmasters but only 41 female. There are 3,891 male international masters compared to 134 women with the same title

Women remain under-represented in Indian chess, though India has better numbers than is seen globally.

There are 40 male grandmasters for every woman who has the title in India. The global ratio is 43. Similarly, there are 14 male international masters for every woman who achieves the title in India. It is 29 globally.

Women are a minority at the top. There are only two women grandmasters in India (Harika Dronavalli and Koneru Humpy). The number of Indian male grandmasters is 79, as per the latest available International Chess Federation (FIDE) data. Numbers may have slightly changed since India has added a few more grandmasters in recent times. The trend is also similar with international masters. There are nine among women, compared to 126 men (chart 1).

Globally, there are 1,770 male grandmasters but only 41 women holding the title. There are 3,891 male international masters compared to 134 women with the same title (chart 2).

A surge in grandmaster additions has meant that India has significantly more people at the top, than the handful in the early 2000s. India is ranked fifth with 81 grandmasters excluding two others who have fulfilled the criteria but have yet to receive the formal title. Russia tops the list with 188. Others in the top 10 below India include Spain, France, Serbia, Poland and China. They have between 50 and 60 grandmasters each (chart 3).