Pollution ko kar de chhoo

Instituted in 1987, the award acknowledges individuals and organisations for outstanding achievements in environmental protection. The other awardee fromIndia is Captain Krishnan Nair of the Leela Group for his contribution to the greening of the hotel industry.

Kruti has always been special. She is India8217;s first test tube baby. She now has more than 7,000 tricks up her sleeve and is among the youngest magicians in the world. She has also been blessed by Mother Teresa, felicitated by Nelson Mandela and honoured by several organisations in India and abroad.

Kruti8217;s magical world began to unfold when she was just five. Fascinated by a roadside magician in Lonavala, she convinced him to teach her some tricks. 8220;It was difficult for me to find a teacher when I began. Everyone thought I was too young to learn, my hands were too tiny,8221; she recalls. A year later, magician William Zambago, a contemporary of P C Sorcar Sr and mentor of K Lal, began schooling her in magic. She almost instantly started holding shows, and now has over 1,700 national and international shows behind her.

8220;I like magic the best of all the Indian arts because it can be performed atany time, in any place,8221; Kruti told Express Newsline. She uses her hocus-pocus world not just to amaze, but to brighten the days of mentally and physically challenged children, street children and, of course, to bring about environmental awareness. Kruti is also part of the central Bal Bhavan8217;s vermiculture project in Mumbai and of the Delhi-based Panchvati Green Movement.

In 1997, Kruti set up the Kruti Eco Foundation, which seeks to spread ecological awareness among children. Kruti also says she teaches street children the tricks of the trade to make them financially self-sufficient. Her fee? A vow from them that they stop begging, robbing and drug trafficking, she says. The proceeds from her shows are donated to the aged and children in need.

Kruti is determined that the art of Indian magic should not die on account of magicians fiercely guarding its secrets. 8220;Kruti can8217;t be taught any more magic,8221; said Subhash Parekh, her proud father, 8220;Now, she builds imaginatively on the basics she haslearnt.8221;

Kruti, a resident of Walkeshwar and a Class X student of Walsingham House School, has also found time to top her exams. 8220;I only travel during the holidays so that magic does not interfere with my education,8221; she explains. Magic is not her only passion. Kruti enjoys roller-skating, shooting, chess, classical singing, riding, playing the piano and the tabla, tennis and table-tennis.

8220;When she is performing, she is as mature as a 40-year-old, offstage as childish as a four-year old. She has not lost her childhood,8221; remarks her father. And while Kruti says she would like to set up a magic academy some day, she8217;s gearing up for the logical world of computer science as a career choice.