India’s 100th Grandmaster Anuj Shrivatri spoke about his chess career in an interview with The Times of India. Shrivatri said that he played in chess tournaments while studying at university. Anuj explained how he turned down an IT job offer in favor of chess.

Anuj Shrivatri

Anuj Shrivatri

India's 100th GM

“I felt a change in my play, in my temperament. I thought: ‘No, I should give chess a real shot, give it a year or two and try to become a GM’.

I was fairly certain by then that completing the GM title would be a great thing. So, I quit the company and went full-time into chess…

Finances were the biggest struggle, because I was managing everything myself and there was no sponsorship as such. I was earning money from Rapid tournaments and spending it on trips abroad…

The strong players are usually found in very niche tournaments, a big event in Kazakhstan, or a strong open in Qatar. But going there is financially a very risky decision.

One tournament can cost around a lakh rupees (~$1050) just to go and play.”

Anuj Shrivatri received a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from Lovely Professional University. Shrivatri interned at an IT company and received a full-time job offer from them. Anuj rejected the offer and left the company.

Anuj Shrivatri became India’s 100th Grandmaster on November 8. Anuj achieved his final GM norm at the 7th ASEAN Plus Individual Open Chess Championship. He won the event by scoring 7/8 points.