Kyra Prakash, a 3rd gen. Resident of GK2, a student of Sriram school shares her take on teenage issues, likes & aspirations with the wisdom of an intelligent 13-year-old youngster. An interesting chat over cupcakes & lemonade with Simi Sahnan.
S- Any hobbies?
K- I’d say I’m towards the creative. I’m taking piano classes, love Art & drawing & baking.
S- The cupcakes are delicious! Who taught you to bake?
K- My Nani, Anita Dhawan gives classes in baking so naturally the best kind of granny to have. Also, she always gives me whatever I want, even when Mom refuses. You know..only little treats like ice cream or junk food etc.
S- What’s your take on clothes & fashion?
K- just sporty casual wear is my style. It’s a battlefield if we have to go out for a family event & mom wants me to wear anything even remotely formal.
S– Are your parents the typical Helicopter parents?
K-No, Thank heavens! They are pretty easy going. I have a good balance of study, hobby & free time.
S- What’s your social media status? Instagram? Tik tok ? X ? Thread or whatever is the latest?
K- Sorry to disappoint you!! (Giggles) I don’t have a smartphone & I’m ok with that. Even a few of my friends don’t. For necessity, we have a basic Nokia.
S- Aah ! Very unusual. Most parents complain about kids doing too much screen time.
K– Oh I sneak in a couple of hours on my laptop…. We do homework too but mostly chatting with friends (mischievous grin)
S- Do you have a lot of friends?
K– I have 3 sets of friends – classmates, bus friends & Gk2 colony pals that I’ve hung out with since we were toddlers.
S– what do you all do when you hang out together?
K– Honestly we just love to tease each other….kind of banter.
S- Can this ‘leg pulling ‘sometimes get mean?
K- You need to know when to stop with it, not overdo it . We just keep it light & fun. A bit of teasing is ok. Sometimes we argue over the dumbest of things just for the sake of it but it doesn’t mean anything.
S-yes, I guess this is a way to maneuver social skills & coping mechanisms. Also prepares kids for the adult world. But some kids get very affected .
K- My friend, when she joined school, was initially very shy. She would take offense at the banter & get upset but then I shared my experience with her that I too, hated people making fun of me & with the types of friends I had it was difficult . I mean everyone was always pulling each others leg. I would get upset over the smallest of things & get mad at my friends. But over time I learned how to give it back & most importantly now we know where to draw the line!
S-A typical question asked is what do you want to be when you grow up.
K-I don’t know. I’m a very “ I will cross that bridge when I get there” type of person so I don’t have any future plans but who knows maybe one day I’ll be able to give you the answer.
On that positive note & a few more guilty bites of delicious cake we concluded our chat & Kyra rushed off to meet her friends.
