"Curry scent" made Magnus lose; Racist backlash against Gukesh after win
A viral video capturing 18-year-old Indian chess prodigy D Gukesh defeating World No 1 Magnus Carlsen in Round 6 of Norway Chess 2025 has sparked widespread attention.
The video footage shows Carlsen banging the table in frustration after a critical blunder that made Gukesh victorious, despite the latter being in a losing position initially.
The win was a significant milestone for Gukesh, but unfortunately, it was tainted by racist and xenophobic comments targeting his nationality on social media platforms, as per a Hindustan Times report.
The comments section of the viral video, particularly on the social media platform TikTok, has been flooded with derogatory remarks about Gukesh’s Indian heritage.
One offensive comment, highlighted in a screenshot, read, “Magnus was distracted by the curry scent (sic).”
An X user (@MeruBhaiya) raised concerns in an X post, stating, “Can I ask why isn’t @NorwayChess moderating its TikTok account, despite repeated racist comments targeting Gukesh? These comments are visible, liked by thousands, and consistently appear at the top.”
This has fuelled outrage over the lack of sensitivity when it comes to sharing such hate comments, and the lack of moderation from the companies.
Social media reactions
The incident has prompted strong reactions across social media, with many condemning the racist comments and expressing support for Gukesh:
One user remarked, “West hates Indians, they always did,” pointing to perceived biases against Indians.
Another user dismissed the trolls, saying, “No worries. The whole world hates India's rise. Who cares about trolls? Let them waste their time and mind.”
A fourth commented, “They can't accept the fact an Indian talent got over the top. Nobody from the West is complaining about Magnus' attitude, saying it's all. It's pure jealousy.”
Gukesh’s grandfather, Shankar Rajesh, addressed Carlsen’s table-banging incident in an interview with ANI, calling it a “natural” reaction. He added, “He will be relaxed, and he will be practising.” Celebrating his grandson’s achievement, his grandfather noted, “One of the major achievements which he hadn’t achieved before, he achieved now. Gukesh has now beaten Magnus Carlsen as well. There is no pressure on him now.”
