India, Nov. 9 -- In June last year, Anuj Shrivatri had to choose between a remote job offer from a German-Indian enterprise technology and consulting firm and chess. He picked the seemingly less secure path. A little over a year later, he has earned himself a place in Indian chess history - and perhaps in trivia quizzes - as the country's 100th grandmaster.

Nearly four decades after Viswanathan Anand became India's first grandmaster, Indian chess has reached a milestone that once seemed distant. Anand's improbable run - carving his path as the lone Indian GM in elite chess, to winning the World Championship five times, lent belief.

Others followed, and with them grew an ecosystem that made the journey a little less improbable.

Grandmas...