NIE NEWS MAKERS MEET-2014

On 29th August, 2014, two of us, I, Mehar Kaur and Varun Sharma of Class XI-C, attended the Times NIE News Makers' Meet 2014-15, which was combined with 'Meet The Author' programme. We were accompanied by Gandharvi Ma'am. The event was an initiative of The Times of India NIE, to provide budding journalists and reporters with a forum to voice their opinions and concern. More than 60 schools from all over Delhi and NCR were a part of the Meet.

The Meet was organised at Manav Rachna University, Faridabad. Mr. Vikas Singh, Resident Editor, TOI and Ms. Radhika R. Dhariwal, author, The PetPost Secret graced the occasion with their presence as panelists. There were also various other prominent editors from The Times of India.

Ms. Radhika Dhariwal spoke about her novel- The PetPost Secret, which also happens to be her first. She also read out excerpts from the book. Mr. Vikas Singh enlightened the students on the importance of journalism and the qualities required to be an effective journalist. The panelists were open to questions. The students lined up near the podium on stage. However, due to a paucity of time, only a few could be entertained. The two of us, fortunately were the first ones to ask our questions. We asked Ms. Dhariwal why she had chosen unusual themes like slavery and freedom her novel.This question won me a prize, as it was one of the best questions asked!

The second question asked by Varun Sharma was about Ms. Radhika facing a writer's block while writing her novel, to which she replied in the affirmative and also informed the audience about how she overcame it.

The event was an interactive session. It was filled with various surprise events. A surprise round in which bicycles, sponsored by BSA, were gifted to three lucky winners, took place in the end. We were fortunate enough to get the autograph of Ms.Radhika Dhariwal on our library edition of The PetPost Secret.

The event was an open forum and an enriching experience. We definitely look forward to attending more such events. We would like to thank our School for having chosen us for such an interesting programme. -Reported by Mehar Kaur XI-C