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Onward on, one anthem at a time

Anthem spurting became a passion for the student of Vidyashilp Academy. “It lit a spark and there was no turning back,” he says. Soon he was spending hours pouring over anthems of different nations. While he understood the gist of a few, he enjoyed the lyrics and tunes too.

While Yathaarth, the only child of architect parents, found the accents and pronunciation a bit difficult, he kept at it. “The first few tries were difficult. As I continued to practice, I got a hang of the pronunciations too. Before I knew it, I was able to sing more than 100 anthems,” says Yathaarth. Incidentally, the term “anthemologist” was something he coined to describe his unique feat.

[caption id="attachment_9312" align="aligncenter" width="800"] Yathaarth Murthy with Karnataka CM Basavaraj Bommai[/caption]

It was around this time in 2017, that he told his mother about wanting to apply to the Limca Book of Records. To his surprise, he had in fact made the record. That’s how a young Bengalurean came to hold the Limca record for singing the highest number of anthems – 112 at the time. “When I first picked up learning these various anthems, I didn’t think I’d one day become a record holder or a TEDx speaker,” says the class 10 student. Yet, he soon broke his own record when he learnt all 260 anthems, and once again set a new Limca record in 2019.

Saving the environment, one lake at a time

As a primary school student, Yathaarth used to love watching TedX videos and wanted to be on the hallowed platform himself. His dream soon came true when he was invited to deliver his first TED talk in 2018 at age 12. “My first talk was about my journey as an anthemologist,” says the youth who has so far given four TED talks, the most recent in December 2020. The topics have been varied: environment, anthems, and on pursuing one’s dreams.

After he’d set his second Limca record, Yathaarth wondered, “What next?” “How could I give back to the community and do something meaningful? It was around then that I began learning more and more about the environment and climate change. I watched Greta Thunberg’s speeches. Shortly, I began working in the environment sphere in my own small way,” he adds.

Soon, Yathaarth was holding climate strikes and working on a school project for the World Federation of UN Association which earned him more accolades in 2019. “I worked on a project with four friends. We decided to revive Manae, a 4.5 acre lake on the outskirts of Bengaluru. The city was once filled with beautiful lakes, but today most are highly polluted or encroached upon,” says the environmentalist, who launched a crowdfunding campaign to raise Rs 8.27 lakh for the lake’s revival. He worked with Anand Malligavad, also known as the Lake Man of India, to revive the lake and would often visit the lake in his free time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1IVIcvIMKhU

“When we first visited the lake, we could see the barren lakebed and there was barely any flora and fauna. Today, the lake is thriving and hosts various birds like peacocks, has beautiful flora and is the water source for a neighbouring village,” beams the boy who still visits the lake sometimes. His work to revive this lake earned him a spot on White Canvas’ India 20 Under 20 list.

Making time count

Anthems and the environment apart, Yathaarth is also a basketball and music lover. As he gears up for his board exams, he has already begun planning for a future as a diplomat representing India at the United Nations. “I’ve chosen sociology, global perspective, history, and environment management, so I can apply to colleges abroad, and work towards working with the UN,” says the teen who spent the better part of the pandemic trying to conduct relief work. From distributing food to the needy through the iCare brigade to organising Housie for a Cause, and diverting funds towards Covid relief, Yathaarth has been busy doing his bit to spread cheer in otherwise dismal times.

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oment I was standing on the mountain peak covered with clouds, the only image on my mind was of Doraemon’s Nobita (a fictional character) and his friends jumping over the clouds,” laughs Virat, now eight. He was the only person from the state of Telangana among 29 others to have been selected for the prestigious award handed over virtually by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, recently.

An Indian child mountaineer finds his ‘calling’ 

“It was very cold there, my body ached. All I wanted to do is achieve my goal, come what may,” beams Virat in an exclusive with Global Indian. It took six days for the Indian child mountaineer to summit. At one point during his climb, the child confesses, he was bored so he spiced it up with many breaks!

An inspiration to all, Virat is grateful for that video call in 2020 from his relatives in Uttarakhand. “I had just finished my online classes and my mother was feeding me when Karthik anna (brother) and Vaishu akka (sister), who were trekking Rudugaira mountains, call, sharing their experiences and the vista. I was fascinated by the mountains instantly and decided that I too wanted to climb mountains. That's it, I had a lengthy discussion with my parents who agreed,” informs the Indian child mountaineer, a class III student of Gitanjali Devshala School in Hyderabad.

His father Sharat Chandra approached Bharat Tammineni, a mountaineer who runs Boots and Crampons, a Hyderabad-based academy to train trekking enthusiasts. “Bharat Sir first did a physical evaluation. I started training on December 15, 2020,” informs the excited Indian child mountaineer. Then began the rigorous training. The Hyderabad lad would run for 6-7 km every day, do Suryanamaskars, sit-ups, meditation and breathing exercises (anulom-vilom and kapal bhaati) and mock-climbed the Moulali Fort, supervised by Bharat and others. “I got a chance to prove my mettle when I participated in a 5k run. After successfully completing it, Bharat Sir told me I was ready, and he chose Mount Kilimanjaro,” informs Virat.

The road to Mount Kilimanjaro for the Indian child mountaineer

Training completed, Virat, his parents and coach left for South Africa on February 28, 2021. Once formalities were done, they proceeded with the trek on March 5. The first stop was Mandara hut at an elevation of 2,720 metres (approximately 28,000 steps). After spending the night there, the next day, they left for Horombo hut at 3,720 metres. “Enroute to Horombo hut, I was bored, and taking short breaks so my parents shared some inspirational stories (to motivate me). We reached Horombo hut by evening, and spent two nights there,” recalls Virat, whose parents accompanied him till Horombo hut. Thereafter, his parents bid the Indian child mountaineer goodbye, and he undertook the arduous trek to Kibu hut at an elevation of 4,720 metres. “This journey was very challenging,” informs Virat, who overcame multiple challenges - extreme weather and body wear and tear.

The following day, Virat woke up at 3.40 am and undertook the last leg of his journey. “It was a foggy day with heavy winds and snowfall. After trekking for hours, we reached the summit. I couldn’t believe what I saw. Clouds everywhere, and I was standing on top of it (images of Doraemon flitting past),” says Virat, eyes bright recalling seeing a rainbow for the first time. The Indian child mountaineer's descent to his anxious parents waiting at Horombo hut was good. “On seeing me, my mother broke down and hugged me real tight,” smiles the child, whose name has been recorded in the Asian Book of Records and Indian Book of Records for his feat. “Thereafter, I got so many gifts,” smiles the super trooper who stuck to his usual diet comprising Indian food while summiting Kilimanjaro.

Next is Australia for the Indian child mountaineer

Now, the Indian child mountaineer, Virat is enthused, “I am preparing to climb Mount Kosciuszko, the highest mountain in Australia. Bharat Sir suggested it,” pipes Virat, who otherwise likes playing guitar, reading, cricket, skating and even dancing. “My target is to climb all the highest mountain peaks in the world before I turn 10,” pipes Virat, who has participated in many competitions - storytelling, fancy dress, shloka recitation, cycling and running race. One can even find the little lad cooking with his mother on occasion.

Named Virat, the Hyderabad boy says his mother came across the name reading Satyarth Prakasam. “Another reason is that the last letters of my parents name adds up to Virat,” smiles the Indian child mountaineer, an October 2013 born.