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A Walt Disney in the making
 Usually when there is a power failure, people grumble and go in search of candles, to light up the place. But Ujval Nayar has lit up his life and his future by creating something new and imaginative i.e., a story in the form of a cartoon about the flame of a candle.
A student of Chettinad Vidhyashram, Chennai, Ujval had keen interest in drawing cartoons. It was just coincidence that he happened to watch an advertisement on TV and, fascinated by it, he produced a cartoon which has brought him to the limelight.
His cartoon picture, 'The flame who loved to dance', was featured in the Chicago International Children's Film Festival (CICFF), held from October 23 to November 2, last year. Ujval's creation has made him popular and he was the main topic of conversation at the international meet.
"I happened to see an advertisement on TV by Toonz India from Thiruvananthapuram. I created a two-page story, drew cartoons as illustrations and sent it to CICFF," says Ujval hesitantly and with a certain degree of shyness. CICFF received about 1,000 entries for the competition and 10 entries were short-listed. Ujval's happened to be one of them.
Padmaja Nayar, proud mother of Ujval, works as a teacher in Chettinad Vidhyashram, and his father, Venugopal, is director of an advertising agency.
 The story of 'Dancing Flame' is based on a situation where in a house, due to power cut, a candle is lit. The flame slowly dances in all the directions and brings cheer to the children. While the flame is thus entertaining the children with it's dancing movements, the power returns and the children blow off the candle. The smoke that arises from the wick tells them that it will return, and disappears. This story is presented in a very interesting manner by
Ujval.
Last July, this cartoon was selected by 'Tenas', an organisation in Thiruvananthapuram, and Ujval accompanied by his father, underwent training in animation there, helped by
Tenas.
Ujval says that he was taught a variety of postures, cartoons and matching background for cartoons. His cartoon was featured in Cartoon Network on November 14 (Children's Day) last year.
He created his first animation picture at the age of 10, titled 'Thirsty Crow', for a science project. Deviating from the subject, he created the story by showing a crow asking a tender coconut seller for a straw and using it to drink water from the pot. This different concept was the brainchild of my mother, revealed
Ujval.
Though his father has been teaching him about facts and intricate details about animation, the truth is that Ujval is a natural, his interest and involvement in drawing makes him shine all the more.
Three films were selected by CICFF 2003, out of which the cartoon by 11-year-old Manasarav of Hyderabad, 'The Cute Bunny', won the best film award and '125 Math Toon' by Akilesh Anand of Bangalore, the second prize. The film is all about a teacher and his students travelling to 'mathland' and their experiences.
The prizes will be distributed this Friday at a function in
Thiruvananthapuram.
Ujval's aim is to learn various aspects of animation, visual designing and scale new heights in this field. One is sure that the achievements made by these children will take them further and they will become role models for future generations.
KT Sri
(Translated by Radha N)
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