(June 4, 2022) Remember when Psy’s foot-tapping number Gangnam Style opened up the doors to K-pop across the world? India, too, wasn’t far behind in lapping up the craze, which soon snowballed into the Korean wave. Now a decade later, a teenager from Odhisa has scripted history by becoming the first-ever K-pop star from India. Meet Shreya Lenka, the 18-year-old who has grabbed a spot in the Korean girl band Blackswan, and will soon brush shoulders with band members Youngheun, Fatou, Judy, and Leia. The Rourkela-born dancer and yoga practitioner beat thousands in auditions and trained for six months under DR Music to gain the top spot. Global Indian turns the spotlight on this Indian artist who is set to become a global icon.
Her journey with arts began in Rourkela when she started training in Odissi at an early age. However, financial constraints put a sudden halt to her plans after a year-and-a-half of grounding. But that didn’t deter her love for dance, instead, it pushed her to diversify into freestyle, hip-hop, and contemporary under the tutelage of renowned choreographer Madan Mohan Purthy.
Shreya Lenka is now a part of Blackswan
It was the boy band EXO that opened up the world of K-pop to Shreya, who instantly fell in love with Korean music, and soon found herself ‘fangirling’ for K-pop bands like BTS, Stray Kids, and The Boyz. This love for K-pop nudged her to apply for auditions online after one team member of Blackswan quit the band in 2020. Having chanced upon her golden ticket to the K-pop world, Shreya started preparing for the big opportunity. From practicing dance on her roof to starting a YouTube channel to learning Korean, the teenager did everything to get into the skin of a K-pop star. “I fell in love with K-pop when a friend showed Exo’s Growl to me. It was so unique that I started copying their moves. Then, I researched and came to know about PSY, Rania, BTS, Blackpink, and I dreamed of performing like them,” the Indian artist, who goes by the stage name Sriya, said in an interview.
But getting her first K-pop audition right was a mammoth task, especially with the world under lockdown. With no studios available to shoot her audition video, she knocked on the door of a yoga studio owner who agreed at the behest of Shreya’s aunt, who teaches yoga. “Qualifying in the first round of DR Music’s audition was an achievement as I was the only one from India to be selected from more than 4000 applicants around the world,” said the pop star who sent a dance and song video for the first round, and a dancer cover of Blackswan’s Tonight for the second round.
Shreya Lenka joins K-pop band Blackswan
While dance is her strength, the Indian artist had to work on her vocals. But she often found it hard to find a coach owing to her deep voice. That’s when her grandmom chipped in and found a Hindustani classical music teacher for her. She trained with him once a week and watched online tutorial videos to expand her vocal range. This fool proof preparation helped earn her a spot in Blackswan, something that she calls nothing short of a “dream.” “Being from a small town with fewer resources, facing difficulties is a part of my life, but I am determined to create a mark in the creative field,” she said.
(December 10, 2023) On the tropical beaches of Mamanuca Islands in Fiji, 19-year-old Swati Goel was handed a bunch of rudimentary supplies and told to fend for herself. "There are coconuts, here's a machete, go kill things and eat," Goel recalled later, to The Crimson. This was the start of Season 42 of Survivor, the iconic American television TV show she had grown up watching. Goel was the youngest contestant there, and that first night in her new home was terrifying. "It's truly like being lifted from reality and being put in this little alternate world that is completely cut off from everything else." In May of 2021, Goel, who had begun a degree in Computer Science at Harvard University one year prior, finally got her turn on the reality show. Around the same time, she had also enlisted in the Army National Guard, and having undergone intense physical and mental training, felt she was ready to take on the heavy duty competition for a million dollar prize. [caption id="attachment_34541" align="aligncenter" width="546"] Swati Goel | Photo: Instagram[/caption] A bright young student Born to immigrant parents, the Global Indian grew up in the Bay Area, where her father, Ashish Goel, works
Born to immigrant parents, the Global Indian grew up in the Bay Area, where her father, Ashish Goel, works as an Associate Professor of Management Science and Engineering at Stanford University. Her mother, Ruchi, is a Managing Director at Accenture. Swati was always technologically sound and academically ambitious.
When she was sixteen, she spent six months at Stanford University as a research intern, where she worked under Professor James Landay and Dr Elizabeth Murnane. There, she helpd build a "test app for features for affective AI and image recognition," the Global Indian writes on LinkedIn. The prototype app, named Dragon Companions, uses a story narrative to craft augmented reality learning scenarios that draw on concepts like curiosity-driven learning , gamification and context-driven learning.
In 2019, she began a prestigious, three-month STEM program at the Research Science Institute in Cambridge, Massachussets, where she was one of 50 scholars selected from across the US. There, she worked on identifyig fake news sources using the Twitter Co-Exposure Network. As she came close to graduating for high school, she enlisted in the Army National Guard. Being born to immigrant parents and hailing from a town disconnected from the military motivated her to join the army.
Academically gifted, Swati was admitted to Harvard University in 2020 and is expected to graduate in 2025. By the time she found herself on Survivor, she was "in the best shape of her life," she says. However, she did not let her fellow contestants in on the fact that she was a computer science student at Harvard.
Ever since middle school, Survivor, which has run a whopping 43 seasons, was her comfort show. "It's just the thing I would watch whenever I was upset or sad," she said in an interview. She had always wanted to audition and would hope, back then, for Survivor to stay on air. She submitted a video audition and then waited. Even so, when she finally made it to the island, Goel was stood there in disbelief. "A small part of me was like, 'this is fake,'" she said. "They truly just left us on an island..."
Survivor, one of America's most watched reality shows, takes a group of strangers to a remote location and leaves them to survive in the wild. They build their own shelters and are given very limited food, usually rice and beans, which they are expected to figure out how to cook. The Fiji islands, where the show has been shot since 2016, are full of marine life for those who know how to catch it, and the lush tropical forests are full of edible plants and seeds, provided one knows how to recognize them. Fresh water is limited and contestants have to find their own sources, or collect rainwater in empty coconut shells, which they use for drinking and to cook their food.
It's not just that, though. Physically challenging though it is, the contestants are split into tribes and left to compete against each other in a series of challenges. It's reminiscent of William Golding's Lord of the Flies, where these people are left to create their own social hierarchies and structures, and to define their own roles within this. Players are also voted out one at a time, so when they're not hacking open coconuts or killing prey, they need to strategise and form alliance with each other.
At the end of the day, everyone is in competition, for the $1 million prize. There are no allies. That's a lesson Goel learned the hard way. Her strategy was to tell multiple people that they were her "No. 1" and confiding in a number of her competitors. Unfortunately, her contestants, despite not being Ivy Leaguers themselves, did find out she was being dishonest. She was voted off the show soon after, having perhaps spent less time on the show than she might have hoped. "I got to live out my dream," she told The Crimson later. "I'm not gonna sit here spending my life thinking about what I could have done differently."
Swati Goel has now completed her military training and does domestic missions as a member of the National Guard. She also hopes to put her fame to good use through the Open Doors Project, where she hopes to hold podcasts and a video series about mental health among the youth, to start conversations around it. That apart, Swati, who is a big fan of Elon Musk, has said, "My life’s mission is to change the world for the better. Building something like Tesla, which is uber successful and also a boon to the environment, is my dream."
(November 29, 2022) 17-year-old chess grandmaster Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa, who has conquered the world in the war of checkmates, has been conferred the Arjuna award 2022. In 2016, Praggnanandhaa (meaning 'delight of the intellect') became the youngest international master in history, at the age of 10 years, 10 months, and 19 days. The coveted ‘Grandmaster’ title that he earned later at the age of 12 made him the fifth youngest person ever to do so. Fondly called 'Pragg', the grandmaster defeated world champion Magnus Carlsen three times in a row in 2022, thus becoming a household name. The last of the three defeats was at FTX Crypto Cup in Miami, an international chess championship held in August. South India is overjoyed to see their young prince on the list of Arjuna Awardees, which was announced earlier this month. It has been 14 years since a chess player from Tamil Nadu has been conferred the coveted Award, the country’s second highest sporting honour. The courteous and down-to-earth champion told Global Indian in an interview: I started playing tournaments when I was very young but there is lots more to achieve. [caption id="attachment_24787" align="aligncenter" width="947"] Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa[/caption] Setting the benchmark Praggnanandhaa earned
Praggnanandhaa earned the title of FIDE Master at the age of 7, winning the World Youth Chess Championship Under-8 title in 2013. The champ went on to win the under-10 title in 2015.
In 2016, becoming a grandmaster required winning three ‘norms’. Praggnanandhaa achieved his first norm at the World Junior Chess Championship in 2017, finishing fourth with eight points. He gained his second norm at the Heraklion Fischer Memorial GM Norm tournament in Greece in April 2018. In June 2018 he achieved his third and final norm at the Gredine Open in Urtijëi, Italy at the age of just 12 years, 10 months, and 13 days.
Always a call or text away is the iconic Viswanathan Anand, India’s first chess grandmaster and a five-time world chess champion. The prodigy is associated with Anand’s WestBridge Anand Chess Academy.
Talking about Anand, Praggnanandhaa told Global Indian:
If I have a doubt, all I have to do is message him. It’s a very big opportunity for me to get guidance from him.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvXgXqfyV1k
Praggnanandhaa's first coach was S Thyagarajan, who has trained his sister as well. “GM RB Ramesh became my coach after that,” he said.
Life and the chessboard…
Pragg is not the only genius in the family. By the time he was three-and-a-half, he would hang around watching his sister, female grandmaster Vaishali Rameshbabu play. Although chess was never a 'plan' per se, it seemed only natural that he would be drawn to the game.
Talking about his love for the game Pragg said:
It came to me naturally and became a part of my life.
The brother-sister grandmaster duo love discussing chess moves but their practice sessions remain separate.
[caption id="attachment_24781" align="aligncenter" width="1021"] Praggnanandha with his mother and female grandmaster sister, Vaishali Rameshbabu[/caption]
Always by his side, especially as he travels for tournaments, is Praggnanandhaa’s mother, Nagalakshmi. His father, Rameshbabu, a banker at the Tamil Nadu State Apex Co-operative Bank, takes care of all the details involved in managing the household’s two grandmasters. The class 12 commerce student at Velammal in Chennai gets support from his school as well.
My school supports me immensely and allows me to take leave to play tournaments and practice.
It hardly needs to be said that Praggnanandhaa rarely misses practice. “The duration might vary based on tournament schedules and exam timetables but I always manage to give it my time.”
Impressive journey...
Praggnanandhaa began traveling abroad for tournaments at the tender age of seven. "I have lost count," he says, pausing to think about it. "I have probably visited 30 countries." No matter where he goes, his focus remains unwavering, concentrating on one thing only – the game that he is there to play. There is hardly time for trivialities like sightseeing.
To emphasise this, Praggnanandhaa said:
My favourite place? Any place where the tournament went well becomes a good destination for me.
At 17, Praggnanandhaa has seen more of the world than most people will in a lifetime but is an undoubted homebody. He loves being home in India and whenever he has the time, likes to watch Tamil films. The typical boy-next-door in every other way, Praggnanandha loves Indian food more than any other cuisine and plays with one mission - To make his country proud.
(November 8, 2023) Monika Chandolu, a resident of Movva village in Krishna district in Vijayawada, got an impressive 95.4 percent in her 12th grade and qualified for the JEE Mains exam. She is confident of clearing her JEE advanced test and getting admission into a top institute. This wouldn't have been possible without the help of 16-year-old Greeshma Davu, an Indian American living in the suburb of Washington DC, who is helping many deserving students like Monika by providing financial assistance for their education. Greeshma is on a mission to empower underprivileged girls and is doing everything possible to help the girls get the right access to education, and it's her parents who are helping her in the process. She is assisting Monika in her pursuit of engineering education using Tata's Palleseva organization, which is located in Kaza village within the same mandal. [caption id="attachment_33957" align="aligncenter" width="525"] Greeshma Davu[/caption] "During a visit to my grandparent's hometown in India, I have learned about the dire consequences of inadequate education. Witnessing the lack of access to basic rights for women, I became motivated to make a difference through charity," she told a daily. While her parents have been the wind beneath her
quences of inadequate education. Witnessing the lack of access to basic rights for women, I became motivated to make a difference through charity," she told a daily.
While her parents have been the wind beneath her wings, she has been working hard to provide financial help to girls like Monika by working at Kumon learning centers, as well as working as an intern at the University of Virginia Neuro Science Lab. The concept of aiding the underprivileged by offering education took shape during her visit to India, where she saw distressing situations in which women encountered hardships because of their limited access to education.
In addition to her commitment to academics and sports, the teenager is also actively involved in charitable work through her non-profit organization, 'Care 4 Needy,' which extends its assistance to both Indian and American communities. 'Care 4 Needy' was founded in January 2022, with the initiative stemming from the vision of Greeshma's mother and founder, Srilatha Tata, along with her maternal uncle, Pavan Kumar Tata. Greeshma and her uncle, Anil Kumar Tata, serve as co-founders of the organisation.
This dual-pronged dedication to education and community service exemplifies their family's commitment to making a positive impact both locally and abroad through 'Care 4 Needy.'
Apart from charitable work, Greeshma has demonstrated her academic prowess by achieving the sixth position in the State Technology Student Association (TSA) conference, showcasing her excellence in this field. Simultaneously, she is passionate about sports and has earned a spot on the Junior Varsity Volleyball team at Rockridge High School, her former educational institution.
Furthermore, Greeshma is not only excelling in her studies and sports but also showing her commitment to social causes. Her goal is to provide sanitary napkins to women and teenagers in rural areas, and she has already managed to raise an impressive $20,000 in funds to support this vital cause. Her dedication to both academic and humanitarian pursuits is truly inspiring.
"Working at the National Institute of Health to support those suffering from lupus disease, Greeshma achieved recognition in the State Technology Student Association. With the guidance of her mentors Ravi Davu and Dr Prakash Bethapudi, she also published research on brain tumour identification," Greeshma's mother added.
(May 17, 2022) "It all started when I was 14," announces Mannat Choudhary, all smiles as she logs in for her interview with Global Indian. The vivacious teenager, now at home preparing for her Class 12 board exam, is fairly relaxed about the upcoming exam - she's already an incoming freshman at the University of Cincinnati, she says. A social entrepreneur at 17, she is the founder of Change In Us, which works towards protecting child rights in her home state, Chandigarh. Mannat has been recognised for her work in the same field by the government of Punjab, having served as the Ambassador for the Chandigarh Commission for Protection of Child Rights (CCPCR). She was also awarded by the government of India as a student mentor. On National Girl Child Day, Mannat was among a group of twenty girls handpicked from across the country for the National Girl Child Award. Now, she's all set to begin her studies in quantum biology, paving the way for what she hopes will be a career in research. In September 2022, she will also be part of the Civics Unplugged Fellowship, for future Gen Z social entrepreneurs, run by Duke University. "I'm also a
er 2022, she will also be part of the Civics Unplugged Fellowship, for future Gen Z social entrepreneurs, run by Duke University. "I'm also a summer trainee at Girls Who Code," says Mannat, who can code in C, C++ and is also learning Python.
"Entrepreneurs aren't made in a day," says the young social entrepreneur, who is a member of the Harvard Crimson Youth Entrepreneurship Society and a fellow under the Global Citizen Year Academy, run by alumni from the Stanford and Harvard business schools. "I got a full scholarship for the latter," Mannat says, proudly. Her early forays into social entrepreneurship were, no doubt, the reason for Mannat's entry into some of the top entrepreneurship societies. To her, however, it means a great deal more, a question she answered in her application for Global Citizen Year Academy.
Student topper and ambassador for child rights
Returning, however, to where her story began - Mannat, who was a tri-city topper in the Class 10 board exam in 2019-20, found herself briefly in the spotlight. "I was published in the newspaper then, for the first time ever," she says. Soon after, she received a call from the CCPCR, telling her she had been nominated to be an ambassador for child rights for the state government. "There were three of us and the other two were, coincidentally, both fencers," says Mannat. "I was the only one from the academic side of things."
Taking over as ambassador for child rights, Mannat quickly became involved with the government's Girls India project. The project, aimed at bringing opportunities to those who don't have them, opened Mannat's eyes too, in ways she never expected. "I never knew I had this quality," she remarks. "I didn't know I had it in me to actually reach other people."
Bridging disparities through the Girls India Project
The Girls India Project, which was aimed at bridging the gap between private and public schools, found great success under Mannat's participation.
"When we talk about things like MUNs, public debates and leadership programmes - these opportunities are only available to private school students. Their government school counterparts know nothing about them." Mannat began building collaborations between private and government schools in Chandigarh.
"The private school students would train government school kids in debate skills, how to speak in public and learn about international relations as well," says Mannat. When they found that disparities aren't limited to opportunities, Mannat also began organising trips for private school students to visit government schools and understand first-hand what was lacking. "I wasn't sure if it would work on not," Mannat admits. "But it worked so well that the schools continued collaborating even outside the MUNs."
Despite the success of the project, there was no denying that it had taken nearly two years to implement. "Girls India was launched in 2019 but came into effect in 2021," says Mannat. "It took so long that I began to think, 'there must be a more efficient way than this'." Mannat quit her role as Ambassador in March 2022 but continues to work with the CCPCR.
On the frontlines of the pandemic
Not long after Mannat had assumed her role as Ambassador in 2020, the pandemic closed the country down. Mannat, who had just finished her Class 10 exams at the time, was determined to use every moment - she collaborated with Studio Matrix, an organisation working on ground to link people with Covid-related needs to those who could fulfill them.
"I was on ground collecting data all the time," Mannat says. She recalls working all the time, often besieged with panic calls late into the night. Calls which never, as a matter of principle, went ignored or unresolved if she could help it. "Even if we got a call at 1 am with someone saying 'ki Mannat, 20 oxygen concentrators ki zaroorat hai', I would help them get it done. I wouldn't sleep until I resolved it," she explains.
Change in Us
Watching their young ambassador in action, CCPCR Chairperson soon decided to felicitate Mannat. "I was awarded by the governor of Punjab as the 'best ambassador'", says Mannat. "The first award was for CCPCR and the second for the Girls India project." All this was in 2021, as Mannat entered her sixteenth year. By this time, she had already founded Change in Us, in tandem with her responsibilities as CCPCR ambassador.
Working under the guidance of CCPCR, Mannat went on to launch Change In Us, her own organisation designed to make a positive impact in the lives of children. The project did so well, Mannat expanded to Meerut and other parts of UP. Work mainly involved educating kids on child rights, in collaboration with schools, through webinars and other sessions. "As a child, what are my rights," says Mannat. "That's what I want my peers to know. We hold quizzes and other activities in schools to acquaint students with the rights they have in society."
Mannat would also accompany her mother, an employee with the social welfare department in Chandigarh, as she visited slum areas in the city. "These kids were stuck at home but unlike us, they didn't have phones to attend online classes," says Mannat, who roped in a friend to visit the slums every Sunday with her to take lessons for the kids there.
Access to mental healthcare for students
Mannat is currently working with a friend, Ananya Jain, from Georgia Tech. The goal? To create an app-based platform for young people to discuss their mental health. It will also offer guidance to budding young entrepreneurs, customised advice on goal preparation and career goals as well as the importance of civic engagement. "We're planning to launch this soon after our board exams," Mannat says, adding, "We want it to be free, because we're catering to students who might not be able to afford to pay."
Finding her own path
The journey hasn't always been smooth sailing. Apart from the guidance she received from a handful of mentors, Mannat discovered that the Indian education system isn't geared for those who want to break out of the mould. She was told often to give up on attending science fairs and concentrate on her studies instead. At home, however, her exacting parents, both government employees, have fuelled her motivation to excel. "My mum has done a lot for me and worked so hard to make sure I do well," Mannat smiles. "They will never be fully satisfied with me though and it gives me the zeal I need to do better because I want to please them."
(September 7, 2022) 17-year-old Srijanita Maurya belongs to Mau, a town in Uttar Pradesh which is also known as Maunath Bhanjan, one of the oldest places in the region. The city has a rich legacy in the sari industry but somehow it takes time for outsiders to fathom where it is. Whenever Srijanita introduces her town to others, she quickly adds ‘near Varanasi’ to give an idea of exactly where she stays. The Covid-induced first phase of lockdown saw Srijanita deeply worried as "humans were sheltered inside their homes but the poor stray animals were left to fend for themselves. Since I was nine, I have been rescuing stray animals with my mother,” she tells Global Indian. “My mother is not a known animal activist but has been doing her bit in her small way and has laid the foundation to make a difference; in me as well,” says the youngster who has received recognition in the form of President George W Bush's foundation’s 2022 Points of Light Inspirational Honor Roll. Using the internet for good Inspired by Delhi-based Palakh Khanna, the emerging youth icon who is working with youngsters from across the globe to raise awareness about taboo topics,
Inspired by Delhi-based Palakh Khanna, the emerging youth icon who is working with youngsters from across the globe to raise awareness about taboo topics, Srijanita decided to do something similar. For about a year she has been spreading awareness about animal welfare through the Internet. “Awareness at community levels is important to protect animals who cannot voice their feelings,” she believes. Her deep concern has taken shape in the form of her online platform – The Animal Patronage.
On the path of going global
Working on her idea for a couple of months on her own she was soon able to reach and attract the attention of the school and college students from countries like Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar, and India, who are now part of her 20-member team.
Youngsters voluntarily work on welfare awareness campaigns handling different departments like content creation for awareness programmes, promotional activities, managing events, and coordinating with guest speakers for the Animal Patronage podcasts. Srijanita, who has been a TEDx speaker, hosts the podcast inviting young environmentalists and animal welfare activists as guests.
Eighteen collaborations
The Animal Patronage team has managed to garner 18 collaborations with other youth-led organisations from countries like South Korea, Africa, the UK, Australia, and the US to support the reach of their initiatives and in return increase Animal Patronage’s reach in their localities. “The most prominent collaboration is with Crimson Youth Entrepreneurship Society, a youth-led organisation by Harvard students,” tells Srijanita.
“People shy away from offering just one chapati to a stray dog. In such a scenario, looking into the well-being of large animals like elephants who need more food and care is unimaginable. But they need care too.” Animal Patronage’s goal is to make people more mindful of animals and their needs and do their bit in whatever way they can, beginning with stray animals nearby.
Turning heads
“I am the first girl in my district to work on something like this,” says the 12th grader from Kids Kingdom Senior Secondary School. Many juniors in her school approach her for guidance on similar initiatives that can help them create an impact in the society.
“It’s kind of a bold statement from a 17-year-old but I truly mean to motivate every single youth regardless of gender, economic condition, or geographical location so that they can contribute to society in some way or the other,” remarks the teen who has been recognised as Harvard Innovation Fellow by Harvard University students’ body.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iIc1VmyNEQM
Srijanita plans to study forensics science and become a medical examiner in the future, and has been managing her social initiatives along with studies by beginning her day at three in the morning.
Doing the extra bit
She has also started a movement called Petrichor (which means the first sun ray of the season in Latin) to help youngsters with well-researched information about different internship options available and significant tips on resume building.
Never failing to take out some time every day to devote to her initiatives, she is dedicated to increasing the team size as well as its reach. Since the Animal Patronage team is a multinational student body, meetings are scheduled during the weekends, taking into consideration time zones and study schedules of volunteering students. Srijanita is excited about the Global Kids Achievers Award that she would be receiving in November in Delhi.
Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa[/caption]
Praggnanandha with his mother and 
