A Bookworm Who Loves to Talk: 5-year-old Indian American Kiara Kaur Becomes World’s Youngest TEDx Speaker
- Earlier in February, the child prodigy read 36 books non-stop for 105 minutes, making her foray into the World Book of Records in London and Asia Book of Records.
A 5-year-old Indian American girl has become the world’s youngest TEDx speaker. Kiara Kaur, who lives in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), was recognized by the World Book of Records in London after she addressed a TEDx meet organized in Maharashtra on Nov. 14, Children’s Day.
Kaur is also set to release her first book “Dairy of a 5-Year-Old Genius Chatterbox Who Set World Records,” which “chronicles her journey in her own words,” her mother, Dr. Little Mahendra, a dean at a Dental College, told NDTV. “It took seven months and I merely typed as she shared.”
“I am so excited to be the youngest TED speaker,” Kaur told NDTV, adding that she loves to talk. “I have so much to share. People call me a talking machine and gabby.” However, she told NDTV that she hasn’t made up her mind yet on what she wants to do in life. “Sometimes I want to become a doctor to treat people and sometimes I want to become a leader to help the needy.
Earlier in February, the child prodigy read 36 books non-stop for 105 minutes, making her foray into the World Book of Records in London and Asia Book of Records for her remarkable feat. This means that she read continuously for a little under two hours.
The World Book of Records in London certified Kaur “for having the specific ability to read non-stop 36 books in 105 minutes at the age of 4 years on 13th February.” The Asia Book of Records has also acknowledged that she “set a record for reading the maximum number of books nonstop.”
Mahendra told NDTV that Kaur’s grandfather, Lt Colonel MP Singh, nurtured her interest in reading.
Born in America to parents who hail from Chennai, Kaur, at a very young age, became an avid bibliophile. Her passion for reading was spotted by one of her teachers at a nursery school in Abu Dhabi that she attended for a few months last year before it shut down due to the lockdown. Her nursery teacher spotted her reading diligently in the school’s small library and recognized her passion.
Mahendra, speaking to NDTV said she used to read “even in the restroom and before going to bed,” and has read over 200 books. Kaur, her parents say, spends most of her time reading. Over the last one year, she has read around two hundred books. “She used to read all the time, while in the car, even in the restroom and before going to bed. She is such an inquisitive child, we had to get her books every time we went shopping,” explains her mother, who denies the child was pushed into setting this record.
