Mayank Chakraborty is Northeast India's first GM. (Instagram) Mayank Chakraborty turned 17 in July this year. But just before that, he became India's 94th Grandmaster in March. The feat saw him become the first-ever GM from Northeast India. It wasn't an easy journey for him. He got there by leaving home, over and over again. The Guwahati teenager is currently in Turkey, participating in the First Gazi Open, and the tournament is also going well. He travels almost every month, and it sums up the life of a modern-day professional chess GM. Luckily, he doesn't have to travel alone, and his mother always comes with him. "Sometimes twice a month, sometimes thrice a month. Depends, actually," he says. He is less than a year away from turning 18 now. His GM title arrived in Sweden after a long and deliberately punishing stretch of work. "I had wanted this title for a long time. I became an International Master in 2024, and it took me more than two years to get the GM title. I played almost 30 tournaments to get it." 30 tournaments in two years is a lot, and it invites a question about burnout. But he doesn't accept that and knows that to become a GM, the path is difficult. "We need to feel a little tired before getting a GM title" Mayank Chakraborty is Northeast India's only GM. (Instagram) "Honestly, travelling to different places to play tournaments is very, very fun." Compared to other chess GMs, he was introduced to the game late. He started in 2016 and was introduced to it by a friend. He also joined a local academy. "Slowly, slowly I started working hard, and it became my profession," he said. "I was working at least six, seven hours a day," he says when asked about his transition from junior to senior level. "Slowly and eventually, with Grandmaster coaching and training, I reached this level." He has his own coaches. His coaches are from Odisha, West Bengal. He also has a foreign coach in Israel, with whom interactions have been online.