Samrudh Canpadee wins the top prize for his story (above). The 10-year-old?s versions of Leafy, Biskiti, Wolfy and the Slanting Tree

It was a special day for Samrudh Canpadee, when Disney Channel came calling to confer on him the grand prize of Start Your Story Contest presented by Microsoft XP. Out of over 25,000 original and creative stories sent in by kids from across India, the 10-year-old?s entry, Leafy and Frens, based on the life and times of a leaf, won him and his family the trip to Disney Studios in Burbank, California.

Said the student of Chettinad Vidyashram School in Chennai: ?I like writing stories. A lot of my ideas come to me in my dreams.? Samrudh?s headmistress and English teacher Amudhana Laxmi added: ?Samrudh is a very focused and disciplined child. Shy, but a very good observer and a good writer.?

Proud father Uday Kumar said of his son: ?Samrudh has always been writing stories and small snippets in his notebook and drawing caricatures behind his test papers. I used to always scold him for that and ask him to spend that time studying.?

It was a close fight to the top 10 finalist?s slot, all of whom were awarded HP Pavilion Media Centre PCs. Vignettes of each of the finalists have already been aired on Disney Channel. The 10 stories were published on the channel?s website for viewers to vote for their best story. Five voters, whose choice of best story matched that of the jury, also won HP Pavilion Media Centre PCs.

The top 10 schools that sent in the maximum number of entries also won an HP Media Centre PC each. The top 100 winners shortlisted earlier, too, bagged Microsoft Encarta along with posters from Disney Channel.

?We aim to encourage storytelling and creativity in kids by nurturing their love for fantasy and imagination,? said Tushar Shah, director marketing & communications, Walt Disney Television International (India).

Balle Balle: Students of Kislaya Montessori performing a dance at Bharat Darshan, a cultural programme held at Gyan Manch on March 6 . Picture by Pabitra Das

Added Rishi K Srivastava, director, Windows Client, Microsoft India: ?The magic of software is in redefining the computing experience today... Our focus was on encouraging greater creativity and imagination by young minds.?

Samrudh?s winning story was about a leaf named Leafy, who lives in a Slanting Tree and hates going to school. One day, he flew straight to the Forest Carnival. There he sat over Leaf-Coasters, Snail Rides, and Giant Leaf Merry-go-round. He then drank some Sun-light Soup and ate some Chlorophyllie Cookies. But when it was time to go home, Leafy went off on an adventure instead.

He soon ran into two others who had run away from home, and they became friends ? Reck, a kind of remote with sharp teeth, and a biscuit named Biskiti with pink wafers for arms and legs. They ran into trouble in the Dense Forest, where they were kidnapped in a jute bag by Wolfy and they have to save themselves and the melting Kulfi from being eaten by the hungry animal.

In the end, Reck cuts the bag open with his nails, and Leafy flies them all away. The four friends live happily ever after in their new Hot-N-Cold Home, which they build themselves, with heat to help Leafy stay healthy and the cold room to keep Kulfi happy otherwise he would melt.

Shout out loud

What?s on your mind this week

Pet peeve

?If there are no dogs in heaven then when I die I want to go where they went? ? Will Rogers.

Steffi is dead. She was not just a dog, a pet, or a bundle of joy. She was part of the family. There are many reasons why she will be remembered. The way she would run to the gate to greet us and the way she would try to stop us from leaving.

The way she would plant herself on the bed like a lioness claiming her domain. Her slobbering stinky mouth, the look of contempt when she saw a cat, the fights with Sherry (her daughter), her pride, her patient understanding and motherly affection towards us whenever we?ve been down...

But she?s gone. She was a healthy eight-year-old boxer. She developed a tumour on her breast which the vet diagnosed as ?nothing?, and then another one in her mouth. Things went out of hand, but her vet didn?t even visit her. The tumour burst, she was operated upon last week by another vet, but even that went wrong. She lost blood, became anaemic and died in two days.

Why is there such a dearth of good vets in the city? Why can they not diagnose animals correctly? Why do they treat their patients so dispassionately? Would they have the courage to do that if these patients were people?

Have a heart. It?s an earnest plea from us, on behalf of all pet-owners. Please show a little more sympathy for our pets. They may not be able to speak, but we can, and they are just as precious to us as any other member of the family.

Steffi, you will be missed and may your soul rest in peace.

Radhika Basu Thakur &
Vikram Cariappa

Mad old men

Old unruly men
They itch and scratch,
No subtleties of love
Their hearts unlatch,
While young men
Bide their time,

And case their words
In tripping rhyme,
They neither toss nor tumble
Nor grope for words
When a touch would surpass
All that?s spelt in verse.

Swatee Sinha,
Calcutta University

Chit Chat

Game gossip

Good news for fans of Ragnarok. The Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game (MMORPG) has just announced the first expansion to the game, called Juno. It will add job classes, maps, monsters and skills. But the most notable addition is the floating city of Juno.

Located in the air above Elmeth Plateau, Juno has three islands ? the glorious Solomon, island of intelligence Sonotora and island of prosperity Mineta.

Players can now become Crusaders, Dancers, Alchemists, Sages, Bards, Monks or Rogues. Each new class incorporates new skills previously unavailable in the Ragnarok world.

Players can also own pets, make friends, create their own avatars, sell products and of course, slay monsters. Achievements are rewarded by ?experience points? that allow the players to enhance their individual attributes and skills.

The Juno patch can be downloaded for free from http://www.levelup games.co.in.