Jyoti Iyer
Jyoti Iyer (16), winner of the ClassMate Young Author Contest 2004, (CYAC) sponsored by cigarettes, hotels and agri-products behemoth ITC Ltd and adjudicated by a jury led by Ruskin Bond, believes that the best writing comes from the heart. "If you are honest, it will show in your work. It will shine through."
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| Jyoti Iyer |
A class XI student of Lucknow’s highly fancied City Montessori School, Iyer was adjudged winner in a contest that attracted entries from over 40,000 students in 2,000 schools countrywide. The three-stage contest culminated in a national final shortlist of 12 young authors whose short stories were evaluated by authors Githa Hariharan and Meher Marfatia, who praised the maturity and emotional impact of their work.
Iyer’s prize winning 2,000-word short story titled Post Box No 99, is set against the turbulence of the partition of India in 1947 and draws heavily on the trauma of the times as recounted by her mother. "The partition was the symptom of a deeper cause which is what my story is about. The real story lies in the why. Even today lives are being torn by sectarian conflict," she says.
Iyer attributes her creative writing skills to a home environment which nurtures the reading habit. "My family has a great passion for the written word and on most holidays you will find all of us curled up in different corners of the house with a book," says Jyoti who lists Roald Dahl, Richard Bach, Ayn Rand, JRR Tolkien and Munshi Premchand as her favourite authors and adds her grandparents who write in English and Tamil, to the list.
She believes the other reason for her success is encouragement from the CMS management. "If you have teachers who appreciate your achievements and who make themselves available for help and support at any given moment, it does huge wonders to your self-confidence," she says.
A keen guitarist, born to a banker father and a mother who teaches, Iyer who is studying in the science stream has her sights set on a career in writing or advertising. Last year’s win in the Albert Barrow Memorial Essay Contest held by the Delhi-based Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination has added to her determination.
Encouraged by the good words of eminent authors and writers, Iyer feels she has understood the basics of writing good fiction. "The plot should be strong, every-thing else falls into place. While writing the CYAC story, though I had the beginning and the plot worked out, until the last 10 minutes of the contest I had no idea how the story would end," she recalls.
With the winner’s prize which includes a seven-day trip to the UK covering London, Oxford, Stratford-on-Avon and Edinburgh with the governor of Uttar Pradesh chipping in with a draft of Rs. 17,000 as pocket money for her trip, Iyer couldn’t have scripted a happier ending for her own story.
Vidya Pandit (Lucknow)
Vikram Hemanathan
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| Vikram Hemanathan |
Though only 19 years of age Bangalore-based Vikram Hemanathan is already a youth of many achievements. This enthusiastic and cheerful teenager has won more than 200 prizes and awards in inter-school art, drama and sports competitions. His most recent and highly prized accolade is an award in the ‘Greetings Galore’ contest of the IV SAARC Interna-tional Youth Festival 2003. Vikram’s design was adjudged the second best from among the 17,000 entries received.
Conducted by the highly rated City Montessori School (CMS) Lucknow, the contest attracted entries from 160 schools and junior colleges across south Asia. "I started drawing and painting greeting cards as a hobby in school. Since then I have participated and won prizes in several inter-school art competitions, but this is my first international award," says Vikram, a mechanical engineering student at the Hindustan College of Engineering, Chennai.
Promoted in 1985, SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) is an association of nations comprising India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. One of its main objectives is to provide all individuals equal opportunity to realise their potential, through the benefit of quality education and healthy interaction. "The philosophy of CMS is embodied in the SAARC youth resolution which proclaims an aim to train and motivate children to strive for a peaceful world. Through these creative contests we hope to spread this message of cooperation and brotherhood," says S. Kaur, convener, SAARC Youth Festival 2003 and senior principal of CMS Rajendra Nagar branch, one of the 20 CMS schools in Lucknow.
"The card I designed unfolds as a cross — a symbol of peace and unity. I gave Pakistan a special place in my design because it was the host country of the SAARC summit in 2003," says Vikram.
An active sportsman, theatre artist, social worker and scout, Vikram’s achievements are not limited to art and design. He has won over a hundred prizes in inter-school and inter-college sports tournaments and theatre competitions. Notable among them is the ‘best actor’ award at Theatrix 2003 — an inter-collegiate drama competition.
Vikram is quick to acknowledge the unstinting support and encouragement from his self-employed parents V. Hemanathan and Joan, who run a small-scale mechanical engineering business. Eventually he wants to join the family firm and simultaneously engage with professional theatre.
Quite obviously an individual who believes that for the multi-talented, the best of both worlds is possible.
Srinidhi Raghavendra (Bangalore)