Two to tango can get you accolades and bring laurels to remember by is the motto of Nabeel Ahsan, class XI student of Apeejay School, Noida. In an interview here, he shares how he sailed through all the major challenges that came along with the CODE competition.
Read edited excerpts here.
Tell us about your recent achievements.
I participated in Silico Battles which is the Annual Tech Symposium of Ahlcon Public School. I participated in the quiz, which had been divided into two sections – preliminary and final. Fourteen teams were competing, with two participants per team. Although I encountered a few difficulties – the biggest being the initial lack of a partner, I had to choose anyone who would be free for the spot, and my choice of Ritobrato Bhaumik helped us secure the second position.
How was your experience?
It was a memorable event, even though we didn’t win the first position, I thoroughly enjoyed every part of it. Right before we left for Ahlcon from our school, I received the news that my partner would not be able to attend the event. This led to me having to pick someone who would be fit for the spot and would be available for the event. I knew that Rito was the man for a situation like this, even though he had never participated in a quiz before, I knew that he had a sharp brain and vast knowledge. He was also going to be free for the whole day as he was simply going there to collect another prize he won in Silico Battles, I got him as my partner for the quiz.
Were you nervous?
During the event, we both had sweaty palms and tense minds. In the preliminary pen and paper round, we had 15 questions to answer with 10 of the questions being MCQs and five fill-in-the-blank type questions. This round was fairly difficult, and only the top four teams would proceed to the finals. We came fourth in the prelims, with 12/15 correct answers. Although I am happy with the second position, I always aim to be the first at everything. This event was a great learning experience for me.
What was the most challenging part of the competition?
The most challenging part of the event for me was the prelims. We were 100% sure that all our answers were correct except for three MCQ questions. We completed the entire roster of questions within five minutes and spent the rest of the 10 minutes deciding which option to mark for those three questions. In the end, we decided to wing it and mark whatever we had the gut feeling of being true. Our gut feelings about all three were wrong, but at least we got into the finals.
What about the final round?
In the finals, we did not have much trouble, and went smoothly with almost all our answers being correct in all the rounds. We were tied at the same amount of points till the last round with the winning team. We would’ve gotten the first place if only we didn’t fumble at the end.
How did Apeejay support your journey?
Our Computer Science HoD and the entire CODE team helped me get so many opportunities and have allowed me to participate in many interesting events to improve my skills. I have been participating in quizzes both Inter-school and Intra-school since class IX, and this experience has allowed me to keep winning and learning.
What’s your ambition?
My ambition is to create an entirely new industry – something no one has ever even dreamt of and something so helpful to society that everyone would wish to be a part of it. I wish to begin my career in cybersecurity, and I’ve begun my preparation for JEE 2026.
How important is technology in today’s scenario?
I would say that technology is important in all aspects of life in today’s times, but it has both positive and negative effects, which depend upon every individual and their utility.