Hamsa Padmanabhan (16), a class XI student of the Central government’s Kendriya Vidyalaya School, Pune has bagged three prestigious international awards for her physics research project. Her 15-page research paper, titled ‘Physics of a simple prototype for static magnetic levitation’, won the $1,500 (Rs.67,500) second prize at the Grand Awards of the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair (ISEF) which concluded in Indianapolis, USA on May 12.

The same paper also bagged the first prize award of $2,000 (Rs.90,000) from United Technologies Corp in the science and engineering category at ISEF. Moreover, the American Association of Physics Teachers and the American Physics Society jointly awarded Hamsa its third prize of $300 for her paper.

“Inspired by a magnetic pen set gifted to me by my parents last year, I began investigating magnets and magnetic fields and wrote a research paper on the variable strengths and distances of magnets to keep a metallic pen suspended in mid air. The paper was appreciated by the judges of the Intel Science Fair,” says Hamsa.

Narrating her experiences in the US, the young scientist winner says the project papers were reviewed independently prior to the finalists being subjected to three interviews. “The interviews were very testing and required a thorough grounding in physics,” she recalls.

An avid Star Wars and Harry Potter afficionado, Hamsa was among eight students from India shortlisted for the ISEF pre-college science competition in Indianapolis. The eight in turn were selected from 150 students who submitted projects for adjudication at the Intel Science Talent Discovery Fair held in December 2005 in Bangalore. Subsequently at ISEF 2006 in the US, 1,500 students from 47 countries competed for nearly $4 million (Rs.18 crore) in scholarships and prizes.

Although she’s thrilled, Hamsa, who dreams of becoming a renowned physicist, is no stranger to awards and accolades. In 2004, she won a gold medal at the prestigious All India Test of Scholastic Skills (ASSET) for class IX students, conducted by Educational Initiatives — an Ahmedabad-based NGO started by IIM alumni for qualitative change in school education.

Unsurprisingly Kranti Kumari, principal of Kendriya Vidyalaya School is proud of her star pupil. “Hamsa, always a topper, has made our school famous by winning prestigious awards. She averaged an impressive 97 percent in her class XI final exam this year. I’m certain there’s a great future ahead for her,” says Kranti Kumari.

Michael Gonsalves (Pune)

Kartikeya Srivastava 

An expert tabla exponent with a visharad (graduate degree) from Lucknow’s famed Bhatkhande Sangeet Vidyapeeth, Kartikeya Srivastava (14) has built on this knowledge to emerge as one of India’s best western music drummers. This successful musical diversification was reaffirmed in January this year when Kartikeya became the first Indian to play at Drumtech, London’s respected drum and percussion school founded by legendary French drummer Francis Seriau in 1983. Seriau who evaluated young Kartikeya’s talent to determine whether he merited entry into a 15-day intensive course at Drumtech, reckoned that he has all the right attributes to become a professional international drummer.

Tapping and thumping on percussion instruments from the age of four, it took another four years before Kartikeya’s photographer father Mayank bought him a drum set of his own. And the youngster hasn’t stopped playing since. Basically self-taught, in 2005, he took a fortnight of lessons at Singapore’s Yamaha Music School from Kelvin Kew of the Los Angeles Music Academy, and professional drummer Tony Cee. The training helped him read sheet music and smoothen his technique.

But despite these big time associations, Kartikeya’s declared role model is Dave Weckl, the highly acclaimed jazz fusion drummer. And the future looks good as well because Dominique Pizzinat, founder director of two French music schools, has agreed to coach him after a few years. However before that, after his class X exams next year, he hopes to enlist for a short course at The Collective, New York’s elite school for aspiring percussionists.

“Music is my life, and I will make a career of it, no matter how difficult. My kind of music is a fusion of Indian and Western beats,” he says.

A student of Lucknow’s well-known City Montessori School, where he is in charge of the junior orchestra, Kartikeya also professes a fondness for physics, basketball, table tennis, badminton, golf and snooker. And if that isn’t a plateful, he devours music books and lets in that he’s on the way to becoming a guitarist as well.

Quite clearly this young lad is all shook up to drum up a storm.

Vidya Pandit (Lucknow)