Dopamine Media & Entertainment released the trailer for CANDIDATES, a six-episode series following five Indian chess stars. It tracks their journey from the 2022 Chess Olympiad to D Gukesh’s historic world title win. Co-creator Biswa Kalyan Rath said, “Every loss is personal. You don’t need to know the rules.”
Dopamine Media & Entertainment has released the official trailer of CANDIDATES, a six-episode documentary series that follows five Indian chess players — D Gukesh, R Praggnanandhaa, R Vaishali, Arjun Erigaisi and Vidit Gujrathi — over a period of two and a half years. The series captures their journey from a difficult moment at the 2022 Chess Olympiad in Chennai to Gukesh's historic victory as the youngest-ever undisputed World Chess Champion at the age of 18.
Directed by Prashant Raj and Abhineet Chute, CANDIDATES was filmed between June 2022 and December 2024. The series will premiere on Dopamine Media's YouTube channel on November 22, coinciding with the opening ceremony of the 2026 World Championship in Geneva, where Gukesh will begin defending his title. The episodes will be released alongside the championship, with the final two episodes scheduled to premiere on December 9, two days before Game 14.
The story behind CANDIDATES
The series traces the journeys of five Indian chess players who set out to bring the world title back to India. It also revisits a defining moment from 2013, when a seven-year-old Gukesh watched Viswanathan Anand lose the World Championship in Chennai and decided that he wanted to win the title back.
Through the series, viewers get a closer look at the individual journeys of the five players. Gukesh's comebacks, Praggnanandhaa's connection with audiences, Vaishali's journey, Arjun's approach to the game and Vidit's return to form are among the stories explored.
From losing streaks and setbacks to friendships, family sacrifices and personal milestones, the documentary captures the experiences that shaped their careers. Filmed across eight countries and territories and 14 cities, the series takes a behind-the-scenes approach to documenting their journeys. The crew was present during Gukesh's Olympiad blunder, his reaction to becoming World Champion and several personal moments at the players' homes. The makers have stated that the events have not been staged, scripted or recreated.
What the makers said
Speaking about the series, co-creator and producer Biswa Kalyan Rath said, “Chess looks like the quietest sport in the world. Spend time with these players and you realise how loud it is inside their heads. Every loss is personal. You don’t need to know the rules to feel this one,”
Co-creator and director Prashant Raj said, “We started filming in 2022 without knowing how this story would end. We only knew these players were special and that someone needed to be in the room. We are releasing CANDIDATES on YouTube because that is where India’s new chess audience grew up, and it should be free for all of them,”
Producer Anu Singh added, “We all saw the crown. And it was the Candidates team that was there for the blunder, the losing streaks and the long nights before the wins. Every champion was once a candidate, and that is the universally heart-tugging story we wanted to tell,”
Release schedule
All six episodes of CANDIDATES will premiere on Dopamine Media's YouTube channel at 7 PM IST. The release schedule is as follows: Episode 1: November 22, Episode 2: November 27, Episode 3: December 1, Episode 4: December 5, Episodes 5 and 6 (finale): December 9, releasing back-to-back, one hour apart.
About the series and its creators
CANDIDATES is created by Biswa Kalyan Rath and Prashant Raj. The series is directed by Prashant Raj and produced by Anu Singh, Prashant Raj and Biswa Kalyan Rath for Dopamine Media & Entertainment. It is made in association with Chessbase India, with archival support from the International Chess Federation (FIDE).
Abhineet Chute has handled cinematography and episode direction, while Ajay Mehta is the associate director. Khushboo Raj Agarwal and Aniruddh Ramjiwal have worked as the series and episode editors, respectively. The background score is composed by Daniel B. George and Harsh Upadhyay, with sound design by Manik Batra and graphics by Mihir Lele.
The independently produced series will also be distributed across multiple platforms worldwide after the World Championship match, apart from its YouTube release.
Biswa Kalyan Rath, known for his work as a stand-up comedian, writer and creator, is making his debut as a docu-series creator and producer with CANDIDATES. His previous work includes Pretentious Movie Reviews, Laakhon Mein Ek and three stand-up specials on Amazon Prime Video.
Prashant Raj, the former Managing Partner at The Viral Fever (TVF), has previously worked on the Netflix docu-series Alma Matters: Inside the IIT Dream and the upcoming Prime Video series Tax Department Story.
Producer Anu Singh is a screenwriter, author, former journalist and co-founder of Dopamine Media & Entertainment. Her writing credits include Aarya, Grahan, Scoop, Sajini Shinde Ka Viral Video and Delhi Crime Season 3, among other projects.