Upstep Academy.
While many parents still think of chess as an extracurricular activity thousands of children across the world are quietly logging into classes taught from Mumbai - learning strategy, decision-making and discipline through a structured system built by a Mumbaikar who believed the game could be taught differently.
At the centre of that story is Abhijit Hatkar, Founder & CEO of Upstep Academy, a Mumbai-headquartered online chess academy that has trained over 30,000 students across 20+ countries in just a few years. What began as an effort to solve a problem in chess education has grown into one of the world's fastest-growing online chess learning ecosystems for children.
For Abhijit, chess was never unfamiliar territory. A 2000+ FIDE-rated player, FIDE Instructor and FIDE Arbiter, he spent years understanding the game both as a competitive player and as a coach. Over time, however, he began noticing a recurring challenge among young learners.
Many students showed promise early on but struggled to maintain direction and consistency in their learning journey.
"The issue wasn't talent," Abhijit says. "We saw many young players losing direction despite having potential. There was a need for a more consistent and engaging learning experience that could help children progress with clarity and confidence."
With an academic background in Information Technology, Abhijit approached the problem with a systems mindset. Instead of treating chess coaching as isolated classes, he envisioned an academy where learning could be more organised, measurable and engaging for students.
That idea eventually became Upstep Academy - launched with a curriculum-first approach focused on long-term development rather than short-term results.
Today, students from countries including India,the United States, Australia, Singapore, UK, Europe and the Middle East attend classes through systems and academic planning managed from Mumbai. In many ways, the story of Upstep is also a story of Mumbai itself - ambitious, fast-moving and quietly global.
At Upstep, students advance through carefully designed learning stages that focus on concept clarity, practical application and continuous assessment. Classes are conducted in small interactive groups, while a gamified learning portal helps students and parents track progress in a more engaging way.
The academy now works with over 300+ coaches and has built a student community spanning multiple countries. But its strongest validation, according to many parents, has come through student performance.
Rather than isolated success stories, the academy points to a growing list of achievements across geographies.
In India 7-year-old Shreyanshi Jain, who recently won a Gold Medal in Blitz Solving and a Bronze Medal in Rapid (U8) at the FIDE World Cadets Championship 2026 in Serbia. She is also an Asian Schools triple medallist and secured four national titles in 2025, several with flawless performances.
Another young Indian player, Tanishka Bhandari, emerged as the Under-7 Girls National Champion (2025-26).
Internationally, 13-year-old Clio Alessi from Italy became the Girls U13 Champion at the 2026 European School Chess Championship. A year earlier, she had also won Italy's Under-12 Girls Championship with a perfect 9/9 score.
Then there is Reyaansh Chakrabarty, the Indian-Australian chess prodigy who became the youngest-ever Australian Junior Chess Champion and crossed a 2300+ FIDE rating at just 12 years old.
For Abhijit, however, success is measured not only through medals and rankings, but also through the confidence, discipline and decision-making skills students develop through the game.
Beyond regular training, serious competitive players at the academy also receive exposure to elite-level chess through Upstep's Grandmaster Accelerator Program (GAP), where students gain insights associated with five-time World Chess Champion Viswanathan Anand. Students have also had opportunities to participate in special interactions and simultaneous exhibitions involving Anand - experiences rarely available in traditional coaching environments.
What makes the story particularly unique is that despite its international reach, the academy continues to operate from Mumbai, with its curriculum, planning and academic systems managed from the city.
For a city known for building businesses that quietly scale beyond borders, Upstep represents a modern Mumbai success story - local roots with global reach.
What started as one player's effort to improve chess education has evolved into a platform now teaching children across continents. And while students may log in from different parts of the world, the vision behind those lessons still begins in Mumbai.
