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The write way to go

PANKAJA SRINIVASANPANKAJA SRINIVASAN

Ritu Nichani from Coimbatore has made it to the National finals of a story-writing competition

Photo K. Ananthan

PLAYING WITH WORDS Ritu Nichani

Her `fave' song is Jiya Dhadak Dhadak. She enjoys Su Do Ku. She has been learning Hindustani Classical music from the age of seven and takes a lot pf pride in her handwriting. And, oh yes! she just loves a cheesy pasta.

But what really sets Ritu Nichani apart is her writing. She loves it, she says. She has been writing for a while now and it was no surprise to anyone when she was selected from her school, the G.D. MHSS to take part in the Classmate Young Author Contest conducted recently in Coimbatore.

To her delight Ritu has made it to the National finals that is to be held in Mumbai.

First among equals

She will be one of the 15 finalists from all over the country (selected from 120,000 children from 4,000 schools in 15 cities) who will take a shot at the first prize — a seven-day literary tour to England covering historic places like Oxford, Cambridge and Stratford-upon-Avon. More excitingly, she will get to meet great storytellers like Ruskin Bond (the chairman of the national jury that will be selecting the winner), Nandita Puri, Neeru Nanda, Alpana Chaudhary and Bakthiar Dadabhoy.

Early reader

Whodunits are what Ritu enjoys reading the most. Her tryst with books began with Enid Blyton, though now her tastes run to Jeffrey Archer, Dan Brown, Erle Stanley Gardner and David Baldacci. Her parents, of course, have ensured that she has had her regular dose of the good old classics.

Ritu began reading when she was in Class I and she hasn't stopped since. And she discovered the joys of writing when she started keeping a diary. "Thoughts flow better when I hand write," says Ritu and adds, "I write whenever something moves me."

For a 15-year-old, Ritu sounds profound at times. Her poems, variously titled, "Let there be light," "One big family," "Love," "Life," "Friends", "If I were God... " and "Wake up people", display surprising insights into life and its contrariness.

Fun times

However, her prize-winning short story is simply pure fun. It is a truly funny narration of what happens when a young boy loses his father's nose! Rupa & Co will soon publish her story along with the other prize-winning entries. Ritu says she wanted to be a lawyer. "But the law system is so corrupt," she complains. So what is her alternative? "I want to be a musician," she says.

A writer who also sings...

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