Forget the chessboards! Vishy, Pragg, and Gukesh dance their hearts out at Vidit Gujrathi’s wedding

Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi, ranked 25th in the world, tied the knot with Nidhi Kataria, a 28-year-old homeopathic doctor, on April 2 at the luxurious Oxford Golf Resort in Pune, India. 

The celebrations saw a number of prominent figures from the world of chess in attendance, including 15th World Champion Viswanathan Anand and 18th World Champion Gukesh Dommaraju, who were spotted breaking out their best dance moves during the festivities. A video capturing the event showed an unforgettable moment as some of the top chess players took to the dance floor.

The wedding procession, or "Baraat," was a rare sight, with the combined Elo rating of Vidit’s guests being a testament to the high level of talent in attendance.

Hundreds gathered to celebrate the couple, with notable chess personalities such as GMs Arjun Erigaisi, Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu, Abhimanyu Puranik, Sasikiran Krishnan, and Adhiban Baskaran among the special guests. IMs Tania Sachdev, Rakesh Kulkarni, and several other players were also part of the star-studded guest list.

In addition to chess figures, the event was graced by business and industry leaders such as Anand Deshpande, founder of Persistent Systems and Vidit’s sponsor, Jeet Banerjee, Tournament Director of Tata Steel Chess India, and Avadh Shah, Country Director of Chess.com India.

The celebrations come just days before Vidit’s next major tournament. After a gruelling three-day qualifier last month, Vidit earned a spot in the Freestyle Chess Grand Slam in Paris, set to begin on April 7.