One is a singing prodigy who has enchanted millions with devotional songs, the other is a young podcaster and author who turned childhood curiosity into a platform that informs and inspires kids. Here are two outstanding youngsters who have been selected by the TOI jury for #Unstoppable21

It all began nearly a decade ago when a simple, yet striking, video surfaced on YouTube. Directed and produced by musician Kuldeep M Pai, it featured a rendition of ‘Ganesha Pancharatnam’— a traditional devotional piece, but with an unexpected twist. The voice rendering it wasn’t that of an experienced vocalist, but belonged to a nine-year-old girl named Sooryagayathri. Her powerful and remarkably mature voice captivated millions. The young girl raised in a modest household in northern Kerala followed that up with a rendition of ‘Hanuman Chalisa’, becoming an even bigger phenomenon and amassing over 140 million views.

Now 19, Sooryagayathri has become a global figure in classical mu-sic with her renditions of devotional songs. She has performed at hundreds of venues worldwide — including the US, UK, Australia, Singapore, Bahrain, Qatar, UAE, and South Africa. She held 29 concerts in the US alone over the past two months.

 A second-year public administration student at IGNOU, Sooryagayathri lives a quiet, low-profile life in Purameri, a village near Vatakara. Her neighbours have little idea that the girl next door is often called ‘Junior MS’— in a nod to classical music great M S Subbalakshmi. Her father, P V Anilkumar, is a mridangam artiste, and her mother, P K Divya, has a knack for poetry.Instead of reality shows and competitions, it’s live shows that appeal more to Sooryagayathri. “I am focusing on stage performances and my band, which is based on classical music. I am very happy with the response from audiences across the world. It was the immense support given by my family that helped me achieve this.”

Her journey began when her teacher in lower kindergarten noticed her humming in class. Instead of reprimanding her, she was encouragedto sing. That led her parents to enrol her in classical music lessons. She was four years old then. Her first guru was Nishant Nadapuram. She then trained under noted music teacher S Anandi in Kozhikode. For the past four years, she has also been learning the veena under guru Ramana Balachandran in Chennai.

The turning point for Sooryagayathri came when Kuldeep M Pai was looking for a child artiste to record the ‘Hanuman Chalisa’ for an ad. Realising Sooryagayathri’s talent, he uploaded her recording to his YouTube channel. Since then, Sooryagayathri has continued to inspire millions with her soulful voice, proving that true talent can shine without the spotlight of conventional fame. 

There’s a good chance every child gets asked this one question almost every single day: “What do you want to be when you grow up?” For most, it’s a query that can spark confusion, hesitation, maybe even a nervous shrug. It did the same to Samarth Chitta, a 13-year-old from Whitefield in Bengaluru. But instead of brushing the question aside, he did something different. He turned it into content for millions of kids like himself, all seeking clarity in a world full of endless possibilities. 

Samarth, a student at The International School Bangalore, told TOI , “It started when I was four. With my parents’ help, I launched a YouTube channel. Every morning before school, we’d scan the newspaper for positive stories that could inspire kids like me.”

When the Covid-19 lockdown hit, Samarth’s news show found a new format: podcasts.

After exploring Greek mythology, science, and trivia, he launched a podcast that quickly expanded from news stories to segments on pet care, yoga, travel, and book reviews.

But Samarth soon found himself focusing on one segment. “Kids like me are curious about a thousand careers. So, I thought, why not interview professionals from different backgrounds? That helps us understand what different jobs really look like behind the scenes,” Samarth explained. So far, he’s interviewed a British author, a politician, and a retired major general, among others.

Samarth hopes the episodes are a calm, child-friendly space to learn and get curious, without all the heaviness that usually comes with normal news.

More than generating content, he relishes research. “First, I research my topic, then I compile a script and record it. My mum then edits it, but now I’m also learning how to edit.”Samarth is also an author, with two books already published and a third in progress. When he’s not podcasting or writing, he is building Jenga towers, globetrotting with his family, or practising new languages.

His parents, Chaitanya Chitta and Lakshmi Dasaka, are nothing but proud. Both well-established entrepreneurs in the city, they said their role has been to always support their child, “just enabling his curiosity”. Samarth said he is still deciding on career choices. “I’m exploring architecture, business, cooking, journalism... I don’t know what I’ll do. But I want to keep writing and podcasting,” he added.