Culminating the fourth edition of Doodle 4 Google (D4G) contest, Google India has announced Arun Kumar Yadav, a class 9 student of Kendriya Vidyalaya from Chandigarh, as the winner of this year's Doodle design competition.
The Doodle 4 Google competition is an annual competition conducted by Google India. It was launched in 2009 and is open to students from classes 1 to 10, who are invited to design the Google Doodle to celebrate Children's Day in the country. The theme for
this year's competition was 'Unity in Diversity', and with over two lakh entries received, from more than 1000 schools across 60 cities, within one month of the contest announcement, the contest has broken its previous records. On the jury were famed actor Boman Irani and political cartoonist Ajit Ninan, who went through the entries to
decide the final 13 Doodles, which were then exhibited for online voting to choose the final winner.
The winning Doodle titled 'India - A Prism if Multiplicity' is live on the Google (India) homepage Wednesday, National Children's Day and reflects the artistic merit, creativity, and expression of the theme. The Doodle will also be featured on a special colour pack and drawing book by Classmate. All the finalists will receive a Google Goodie bag and a Samsung tablet
"Doodle4Google is a great platform for youngsters of India to showcase their talent on an international platform. We have seen tremendous response from India, over the years. This year we have received over two lakh entries from more than 1000 schools across 60 cities. We are overwhelmed with the response, and amazed at the talent that remains untapped in the far corners of India. Another exciting element this year was that we saw participation from cities beyond the four metros, which is a clear indication that we are well underway to taking the internet to the next billion," said Rajan Anandan, Managing Director Google, India
For film actor Boman Irani, being a part of the jury was a heartening experience, "This is a great initiative by Google, which will go a long way in nurturing the citizens of tomorrow. Google has become synonymous for all that is fun and innovative on the Internet, and I am proud to be see the young and upcoming talent in India that is using the D4G platform to showcase its creative streak."
Adding to this, Ajit Ninan, political cartoonist, said, "I've always been inclined towards art, but usually see it at art galleries. To be a part of the judging process for D4G has been an eye opener, not only because of the creativity that the children have showcased, but also how they represent the theme 'Unity in Diversity'. Choosing the winning entry has been an exciting experience."
As every year, the Doodle4Google participants were grouped into three different categories: Group 1 comprising students from class 1 to 3 (Winner: Vasudevan Deepak - Devgiri CMI Public School - Calicut); Group 2 with students from class 4 to 6 (Winner: Shravya Manjunath - Mitra Academy - Bangalore); and Group 3 with students from class 7 to 10 (Winner: S. Preetham Paul - Sri Prakash Vidyaniketan, T.P.T. Branch - Vishakhapatnam).
Best Google doodles of 2012For more
Google doodles, visit
this page.