MAM
Quiz Whizz Kids Shine as Army Public School Bags TCS InQuizitive Crown
If curiosity had a championship belt, it just found a new home in Hyderabad. TCS InQuizitive 2025, India’s longest-running interschool quiz saga wrapped up its national finals in Mumbai with fireworks of facts, fierce buzzer battles, and a finale that kept even seasoned quizzers on the edge of their seats.
After a spirited 12-city run cutting across Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Indore, Chennai, Nagpur, Kolkata, Ahmedabad, Bhubaneswar, Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, and Kochi, the top 12 teams converged in Mumbai for what can best be described as India’s “Super Bowl of School Quizzing.” And when the final buzzer sounded, it was Gyan Prakash and Bhavyman Sharma of Army Public School, Hyderabad, who clinched the coveted national title with composure sharp enough to slice through the toughest trivia.
The finals were helmed by the ever-electric Quizmaster Pickbrain (Giri Balasubramaniam), who steered the high-octane contest with trademark wit and relentless pace. Precision under pressure proved to be the Hyderabad duo’s secret sauce, helping them outthink and outmanoeuvre sharp minds from across India.
TCS chief human resources officer Sudeep Kunnumal said the competition once again showcased “the best of young India,” praising the participants for their curiosity, agility, and ability to connect ideas across disciplines. “Their enthusiasm and ability to connect ideas across domains show the immense promise this new generation carries,” he said, reaffirming TCS’ commitment to nurturing young talent in a world shaped by AI, quantum leaps, and technological disruption.
And the scale tells its own story. Over 3,800 teams from more than 600 schools took part this year, reaffirming why InQuizitive remains the marquee event in the school quizzing circuit. With students from Classes 8 to 12 diving into themes across IT, science, engineering, sports, art, and current affairs, the tour rekindled the joy of on-ground quizzing bringing students not just from metros but also from smaller towns eager to take on the national stage.
The national finalists walked away with trophies and gift vouchers, but more importantly, bragging rights in a competition that has stood tall for 26 years, shaping generations of budding thinkers. Today, TCS InQuizitive is a benchmark for quizzing rigour, research depth, and the competitive spirit that keeps students, teachers, and parents glued to the action every year.
As the lights dimmed on the Mumbai stage, one thing was clear: the future belongs to the curious. And thanks to InQuizitive, India’s curiosity engine is humming brighter than ever.
MAM
VML India lands two finalist spots at Cairns Hatchlings 2026
The Mumbai agency is back in Australia with two teams, a UN brief and 24 hours to impress
MUMBAI: VML India is heading to Australia again. The Mumbai-based creative agency has secured two finalist spots at the Cairns Hatchlings 2026 competition, one in the Audio category and one in Design, making it the only Indian agency to have reached the finals in both editions of the contest since its launch in 2025.
Four people will make the trip. Senior copywriter Shilpi Dey and senior art director Raj Thakkar will compete in Audio. Art directors Shabbir and Shruti Negi will go head-to-head with the world’s best in Design. The finals take place at the Cairns Convention Centre from 13th May, culminating in an awards ceremony on 15th May.
The work that got them there is worth examining. For the Audio category, Dey and Thakkar tackled a brief for LIVE LIKE MMAD with a campaign called Inner Voice, Interrupted. Using spatial audio techniques, the campaign recreates the overwhelming self-doubt that descends after a long workday, physically panning negative thoughts left and right before cutting the noise entirely to reveal a confident inner voice. Strategically targeted at commuters via Spotify during evening rush hours, the campaign reframes the hours after work as an opportunity for personal growth and charitable action.
For the Design category, Shabbir and Negi worked on a brief for Canteen’s Bandanna Day, a campaign highlighting how cancer pushes teenagers out of their own defining moments. Using a pixelated design language to create stark contrast between a blurred world of isolation and a focused world of connection, the campaign, titled The Flipside of Cancer, shows teenagers fading into the background of birthdays, skateparks and school proms. As a Canteen bandanna appears, the blur flips and the teenager snaps back into sharp focus.
Kalpesh Patankar, group chief creative officer of VML India, made no attempt to disguise his satisfaction. “We are immensely proud to see our teams consistently excel on the Cairns Hatchlings platform since its inception,” he said. “They have masterfully tackled challenging briefs across diverse categories, demonstrating both layered storytelling and a unique creative approach. This exceptional teamwork is truly inspiring.”
Dey and Thakkar, returning to the finals after last year’s run, were candid about the demands of the audio medium. “It’s one of the most demanding mediums, where we only have a few seconds to capture a listener’s world with sound alone, so absolute clarity is essential,” they said. “The true measure of creative work is its ability to create positive change, and our audio submission was made to help those who need it most while encouraging people to silence the inner voices that hold them back.”
Shabbir and Negi, competing in Design for the first time, described the experience as “a completely different beast.” “We see it as an opportunity to showcase our expertise, raise the bar, and challenge ourselves in new ways, while also learning from creative minds from across the globe,” they said.
In Australia, the four finalists will face a live 24-hour brief from the United Nations before presenting in a live pitch session. Twenty-four hours, one brief, one shot. VML India has been here before. It knows exactly what is at stake.
