The Naga chess prodigies of Kohima: a family of champions on the 64 squares

Kohima, a city of 100,000, has produced a startling run of young chess masters — a record that has made the city’s small chess federation a national curiosity.

The explanation, coaches say, is a coaching culture: morning sessions before school, weekend tournaments, and a generation of players who grew up on analysis apps.

The federation’s ambition is modest and specific: the first Naga grandmaster.