Our souls are like drops in the ocean, waiting to be found and having the sunlight glint off of them. They’re the Pandora boxes to our personalities and the culmination of our heart, body and minds. These precious elements give birth to some of the most beautiful qualities that make a person a human. Talent, imagination, creativity, compassion, empathy and love.
Souls are the embodiment of art, of pure human elegance and rawness. From the time of birth, a child is exposed to all forms of art and hues around it. Art is what helps it pave its way into the world and make sense of the haunting yet magnificent chaos. Art is the building block for a child to grow and blossom into an independent and assured adult. It’s a tool for them to find themselves and make sense of their surroundings in the most astounding manner. It’s what encourages people to leave a mark on this world.
Our International exhibition ‘The Creative Buds’, was a long awaited ride, that gave a refreshing boost to all those who participated and were a part of this experience. The award ceremony was an exciting event that kept all the participants as well as their parents on the edges of their seats. This would have not been possible without our honorable jury members, Kritika Rawat, Rich Mccor, Maria Mishkareva, Dhaval Khatri and our sponsors, Equifax Tourism and Travel LLC and BRAINOBRAIN. Obviously it would have been an incomplete evening without our talented students and their ever supporting parents.
As students and jury members started entering the call a thrilling buzz had settled in the air. Webcams were popping on with their shy yet energetic faces showing up on the screen. The feeling of restlessness to begin the show was apparent in everyone’s voices. The event started off with a bang with our energetic host who embraced everyone with a warm, accepting and lively sentiment.
The first category was filled with paintings from our younger artists, ages up to seven, that left us in immense awe. The theme of this category was ‘Planet Earth’, a very important subject during these frail times that our planet is facing. To see such young kids exhibit such talent was truly inspiring. Their scenes of sunsets and night skies left us feeling exhilarated. The first prize in this category was awarded to Insiyah Mansoor of Gulf Indian High School. The second prize was awarded to Amrita Syam of Gulf Indian High School and the third prize was a tie between Burhanuddin Maimoon of MSB Private School and Lun Hoi Ching Alyssa of Hong Kong Ling Liang Church Tsuen Wan Kindergarten. This category was followed by a token of wisdom from our jury member Kritika Rawat who is the biggest and most awarded Asian celebrity in the Middle East, Co-founder of K Kompany and also called the unofficial Ambassador of the Asian Community in Dubai, a voice that that numerous south Asians relate to. She has been doing radio for the last 15 years and single handedly has built an empire of her own.
Throughout the event along with the award distribution there was simultaneous polling and activities taking place on our socials that made it an even more interactive and thrilling session. Our second category featured students from the ages eight to thirteen with the designated theme as ‘The Beautiful Nature’. The students made sure to do justice to each and every aspect of this theme. They brought their own special touch of imagination, perspective and originality to it. The first prize of this category was awarded to Angira Dasgupta Arinda of Loreto Day School. The second prize was awarded to Samiksha Kamal Verma of Saint Xaviers School. The third prize was once again a tie between Kirti Avinash Phadtare of JSS International School and Vanessa Daniela Ferreira da Cruz of Pinheiro Basic and Secondary School. Our esteemed jury member Rich Mccor, is a London-based photographer who has been described as a non-destructive vandal within the confines of a camera viewfinder. He has a grown social media following and has been hired by numerous brands to bring his unique perspective to their marketing. He left us with some insightful gems into the world of creativity, bravery and talent.
Our third jury member Maria Mishkareva, a renowned watercolor artist located in Russia whose work has left us all in total awe and admiration lent her immense support and insight into our event. What better than some joyous games and activities to bring up the morale of kids as well as break the ice between them and create a bond. Students faces lit up with joy as they heard of the planned ice breakers. We played the classic ‘Simon Says’ that always gets the crowd moving and leaves you with stomach-aching laughter. It was indeed a sight to behold, students running about, jumping, touching their noses with their tongues and laughing all along.
As the rush settled in we began with our third category which was themed as ‘The Future I Visualize’. This was for students aged between fourteen to eighteen, who left us enlightened with their thoughts and vision for a better tomorrow. Their paintings were that which were filled with hope, empathy, human connection and passion. The winner of the first prize for this category was Varsha Saju Nair of Delhi Private School. The second prize was given to Vaishnavi Satheeshkumar of Gulf Indian High school. The third prize was awarded to Selimaq Achour of Star International School.
The anticipation for the Public Choice Award was growing by the second with almost more than 3000+ appreciations. But before that our esteemed jury member, Dhawal Khatri who is a phenomenal artist and a unique talent inaugurated this category. His artwork has been showcased internationally and recognized by the most renowned people across the globe.
A game of riddles got everyone hyped up and rushing to use their grey cells. With answers popping in from every viewer, a beautiful chaos settled in, a perfect gateway for the public choice award winner announcement. Cheers erupted at the name of our award winner Vanshita Aggarwal of Gems New Millennium School and there was complete bliss that settled in.
What a beautiful way to end the evening and yet a refreshing break right before the school routine begins. What we saw was hope, what we recognized was the small joys and pleasures of life and what we learnt is that our kids are truly the leaders of a better tomorrow. The pioneers who will leave deep shining marks into this world.