Experience of a lifetime.

‘Next up are Venkatesh and Chaitanya ..............’ these are the words which still echo in my ears.

VENUE: THE SIRI FORT AUDITORIUM,NEW DELHI

EVENT: ESPN SCHOOL QUIZ DELHI ROUND

DATE: 22^ND OCTOBER,2003

The previous night I had a short sleep....partly due to the anxiousness and a bit because I had to report early at school.It was a good 1 hour my partner and I were made to wait before the school could arrange for a vehicle, something which was supposed to be done beforehand. So we already had a bad start,one doesn’t need them on such occations. Nevertheless the driver was a usual one ...went at an outrageous speed......and we were on time..:).

The atmosphere was electric to say the least.I had been to various quizzes before,but this was different. Schools had their cheering squads....and the auditorium resembled a sports arena...full of noise and enthusiasm. After about 15 mins,between which we interacted with some of the other teams,came the quiz master....the one...the only....Harsha Bhogle.Boy!!!The participants, teachers and the cheering squads all went beserk. The sound effects added a great deal to the already mindblowing environment.

First up was the written round to select a dozen teams from the capital, rest go back home. Though we did not think we had done the round well, we cleared the round with great ease and stepped into the first of the two semi finals.That was when the first line of this blog was said by Mr.Bhogle.....it was an amazing feeling to be called up in front of a huge audience.

I vividly remember our semi final......before it began,I was trembling with nervousness, a big stage and on top of that....we had Mr Bhogle as the quiz master. But as the show progressed I got sure of the fact that I performed my best when under pressure. I answered the crucial questions cementing a place for ourselves in the finale.

The finale was a long one. The top 6 teams battling it out to become the Delhi champions.I must say that it was quite a tiring finale....difficult questions.....several rounds...an ultimate test of concentration and knowledge. All the teams were going on well, untill the last few rounds,which started creating huge gaps. We messed up everything when I jumped the gun on an occation and before anyone’s reaction I myself knew I had made a big blunder.......we finished 4^th but more importantly...entered the TV round.

It was November 14^th,2003.

A typical November(cold) morning in Delhi.

Our wait was finally over. We were at the ESPN studios.

With our make-up done we were all ready for our TV round.I had faced the camera before, but that was Doordarshan......and there was a world of difference between the two channels.Right from the studio to the camera work to the instructions given to us....everything was so very professional here unlike our previous experience at DD.

So,here we were in front of Harsha Bhogle again .....all set for the cameras to roll. The first thing I realised is that the atmosphere there was totally different from home,where I had watched the previous editions of this quiz show and had becaome addicted to it . Every answer of mine was under scrutiny here, unlike home where if I was wrong....I was wrong, that’s it.

We started off quite well, were quick on the buzzer. The shoot went on very quickly.....we had our ups and downs, but eventually went down by a whisker. It was painfull to loose by a margin of one question....heart broken we came out.....dissapointment written all over our face. After we had a chat with the director,producers and Mr Bhogle.....we left the place.

Though we returned empty handed(apart from some goodies.) , this journey was perhaps my greatest learning experience. The highs and lows taught us a lot......

When I look back now......I wish I could turn back time.