Neha Ahuja
If there’s one olympic sport in which tropical India’s chances of winning a medal are remote, if not impossible, it’s snow skiing. But Delhi-based Neha Ahuja (25) doesn’t agree. Right now she is in Charlotte, North Carolina training for the 6th Asian Winter Games to be held in China next January (2007). The first Indian woman to qualify for the winter Olympics and one of the four sportspersons who represented India in the Winter Olympics held in Turin (Italy) last February, Ahuja believes she will bag an olympic medal for the country. "I fancy my chances at the next Asian Winter Games and at the Vancouver Winter Olympics as well," Ahuja told EW in a video conference interview from Charlotte. The daughter of a Border Security Force (BSF) officer, Ahuja started skiing at the age of five when her father was posted in Gulmarg (Kashmir) as winter sports director of BSF in 1988. Soon, interest developed into a passion and she pursued it as a competitive sport ex Delhi frequenting Himalayan slopes for training during vacations from the IAF (Indian Air Force) Bal Bharati School.
At age 16 she moved to Vail (Colorado, USA) to train with Ski Club Vail and subsequently with a scholarship from the Sony Corporation, went on to study (and ski) at the University of Colorado in Boulder, following which she trained with professional coaches in Japan and Austria. Her first big moment was the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City (USA), where an unfortunate knee injury ruined her chances. But she relived that moment this February in the 2006 Olympic Games in Turin, Italy, even though she finished 51st. "I couldn’t have asked for anything more than to qualify in my two events: slalom and giant slalom. I was the only skier from India competing in two events," she says.
Contrary to popular opinion Ahuja believes there’s a future for winter sports in India. "The first step is to equip our ski resorts in Kashmir and the Himalayas with contemporary infrastructure such as ski lifts, ski wear and trained instructors. That’s the way to go."
But right now Ahuja’s major preoccupation is finding a sponsor for the Vancouver Olympics (2008) for which she has qualified. Inevitably she is experiencing difficulties on this front. "The only reason I might not be able to participate in the Vancouver Olympics is lack of sponsorship. But I’m confident that there is a corporate which wants the Indian flag flying in Vancouver," she says.
Autar Nehru (Delhi)
Devansh Zurale
The last time Mumbai-based Devansh Zurale (13) won a notable award for Hindustani classical vocal was in 2004 when he was ranked first at the prestigious all-India Swar Sadhana Samiti held in Mumbai. This was only one of the many awards he won until the year 2004, and if he has no awards to boast of since, it’s not because he’s not practicing enough.
"My guru Dr. Ram Deshpande wants me to develop a love for classical music rather than focus on competitive singing," says this young vocalist who began training in classical music five years ago.
The legendary Bhimsen Joshi who met Devansh a couple of years back had also given him similar advice, so the youngster has taken it to heart and has forsworn competitions to revel in the pure sound of Indian classical music. "I’ve always liked all types of music and used to avidly follow most musical programmes on television. I also enjoyed Indian classical dance, so my mother enrolled me in a dance class at the age of seven," he recalls. "But instead of learning dance I was always singing and my teacher advised my parents to re-admit me into the singing class," he recollects.
Blessed with parents only too aware of his talent, this gifted youngster began attending classical singing classes from the age of eight. Since then there’s been no looking back for this lively class VIII student of the Rustomjee Cambridge International School (RCIS) who practices music religiously for an hour every day, even as he savours all other aspects of a happy student life. "I’m quite good in my studies and spend a lot of time with my friends," he says.
Hanif Kanjer, director of RCIS, confirms this modest self-assessment: "We are very happy with Devansh’s progress, including his academic performance. We allow him the required time for developing his talent as a classical vocalist. Indeed, I believe involvement with music has helped in the development of his overall personality," says Kanjer.
Too young to nurture particular ambitions, for the present Devansh is content to take life as it comes. "I intend to develop my musical talent without neglecting my studies. There’s room for both activities in my life," he says philosophically.
Gaver Chatterjee (Mumbai)