"You're are your only obstacle." Nidhin discovered his passion of gaming at a very young age. Following that passion, he decided to study Animation and Gaming from a university in Pune and paved his path to winning gold medal at IndiaSkills National and silver medal at Global Skills Australia. He now has gold medal at WorldSkills Kazan in his line of sight. Nidhin is not only proficient at 3D game art but is adept at playing guitar and piano and loves to cook and swim.

"Worldskills has enabled me to broaden my horizons." Ganesha Ananda has pursued Aircarft Maintenance Engineering and has worked with AVRO 748 and DEVON aircraft. His expertise in aircraft maintenance have been honed through his sheer hard work and 'never say never' attitude. Ganesha loves working in teams and never shys away from helping his fellow team members in solving any hurdle. The motto by which he lives is that hard work always pays off and he believes that his determination will pay off at WorldSkills Kazan.

"All great minds dare to dream." Suraj belongs to the beautiful state of Uttrakhand. Since a very young age, Suraj showed keen interest in mechanics and loved painting and repairing his toy cars. Over the years, his fondness of cars transformed him into a seasoned Autobody Repair Technician. With his mother being his pillar of strength and encouragement, Suraj is all geared up to win medals for his country.

"Dream it, wish it, do it." Following his father's footsteps, Tushar joined Tata Motors as a full-term apprentice in Pune, Maharashtra. The hands-on-training along with his passion and dedication to learn, helped him achieve first position in Automobile Technology at IndiaSkills National Competition. He is now optimistic to represent his country and bring home a medal.

"Hard work and persistence are the stepping stones to success." Baker by profession, Faruk from Tripura, has come a long way. Getting fascinated by bakery products at a young age, he joined Lavonne Academy of Baking and Pastry Arts in Bangalore to bake the products he had always imagined. His desire is to bake more and more innovative products and enjoy the challenges that come with it.

"It all starts with a dream." Belonging to the state of Uttarakhand, Mahima grew up experimenting with her mother's beauty products. Gradually, the interest grew into passion and she now hopes to become a world renowned beauty therapist. Currently, Mahima is undergoing training at LTA Institute of Beauty and believes representing her country at WorldSkills Kazan is a step towards achieving her dream.

"Nobody said it was going to be easy but that is how you know its worthwhile." Hailing from a remote village in West Bengal, Ramjan started as a labourer to provide for his family. He earned mere daily wages of Rs 200 till he was discovered by a construction firm, ATS Infrastructure that trained and guided him towards perfecting his skills. His grit and dedication paved his way to getting a promotion within a year and securing first position at IndiaSkills National Competition among competitors from across the country.

"Difficult situations are often gateways to opportunities." A farmer's son, Keshar Singh Rajput belongs from Udaipur, Rajasthan. Even though he belongs to a humble background, his potential and dreams have never been questioned by his loving and supportive parents. Geared up to bring medals for his country, Keshar spends hours practicing and perfecting his skill.

"Life will knock you down at every turn, but rise every time you fall." Govind is an autobody painting technician from Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh. He is currently employed at 'My Car Pvt. Ltd', an automobile dealership company of Maruti Suzuki at Kanpur. Being the son a labourer, Govind always felt underconfident and struggled to fit in. Getting this opportunity and platform of WorldSkills, Govind feels he has finally found a place where he can excel and show the world his calibre.

"I let my work do the talking." Soumyajit Dutta is a self-made man. From high school, Soumyajit had a knack for programming and stepped into the world of competitive coding. It was only a matter of time till Soumyajit began leading the leader boards of codechef and others competitions. In college, he was introduced to backend and cloud and that's when his journey of cloud computing began. Till date, he has represented India in various conferences and won 6 hackathons. He has worked with leading brands like Microsoft, CtrlS, Geeksfor Geeks etc. Interested in travelling, Soumyajit plans to start his own travel blog in near future.

"There's no one else tp push me so I push myself myself everyday." Ganesan belongs from a humble background in Karnataka. His father, a farmer, is the sole earner of the family. In his spare time, Ganesan always preferred reading books about the mechanical field than going out to play. Pursuing his interest, he joined a diploma course in tool and die making at Nettur Technical Training Foundation (NTTF). Ganesan is very excited to reperesent India at WorldSkills Kazan and is confident about winning a medal for his country.

'I can and I will. Say it to yourself till you believe it." Abhinash strongly believes that when being faced with an adverse situation, keeping one's presence of mind is of utmost importance. Being the eldest sibling, there has been a constant pressure on Abhinash to support his family. After completing his 10th standard, he enrolled himself in Industrial Training Institute (ITI) followed by one year course in machine learning from CTTC which marked the beginning of his journey leading up to WorldSkills.

"Even nature knows the beauty of symmetry and proportions." Hailing from the southern state of Telengana, Naresh aspires to become a civil engineer. Since childhood, he always found the structure of buildings to be fascinating and grew fond of drawing sketches of various construction sights. He is a quick learner and is always eager to learn new methods and processes of his field. This WorldSkills competition, Naresh aims to win a medal and prove his metal.

"Every great building begins as a construction plan." 22 year old engineer, Amit Yadav hails from Uttar Pradesh. Coming from a modest background, Amit never forgets to count his blessings. He always has a positive attitude which makes him an attentive and excellent learner. For him, getting the opportunity to represent India at the WorldSkills Kazan 2019 is the best thing that has happened to him so far. His goal right now is to win a medal for his country and make his family and nation proud.

"Cooking is like any other art form - one that requires skill and passion." Good in studies, good at sports but it was cooking that ultimately became his passion. The sizzle of the pan and creation of new culinary masterpiece is what makes Angad supremly happy. With his father being a professional graphic designer, creativity ran in Angad's blood. His mother, a teacher, taught him discipline and diligence. He dreams of winning a gold medal for his country and making his parents proud. Angad believes that he is his only competition and to reach the zenith and emerge victorious, he has to constantly keep improving himself.

"Cyber security and national security go hand in hand, compromise on one, and the other is impossible to obtain."Shubham is a brilliant computer whiz. He is currently pursuing his Bachelors in Computer Application from Lovely Professional University, Punjab. Since childhood, Shubham has been keen about learning and experimenting with computer applications. Finding vulnerabilities and solutions in the world wide web has been one of his favourite hobbies. The journey of IndiaSkills has been like a dream come true for him, he is working hard day and night to win a medal for his country.

"There is nothing as such as too much security in this interconnected world." 20-year-old, Swapnil hails from the city of Delhi and is reffered as a computer genius by all his friends. He enjoys tinkering with the computer systems and understanding how they work. He is also keenly interested in cyber security as he believes that this interconnected world of web has progressive threats to one's privacy and security that needs to be well protected. Swapnil is excited to showcase his skills and talent to the world at the international competition.

"Never give up, great things take time." Fond of fishing, Vaibhav hails from a small village, Boisar in Maharashtra. He is known for being calm and determined in the hours of struggle. Vaibhav has truly devoted his time and energy to perfect his skills in electrical installations and hopes to bring pride and happiness to his parents.

"You excel without the fear of judgement." Manoj began his journey to WorldSkills from Rohtak where he won the zonal level skill competition. Since that day, Manoj hasn't looked back. He is currently pursuing his M. Tech(ECE) in Chandigarh. Even though his father couldn't complete his education, he ensured that his son not only got proper education but excelled at his interests. Manoj loves playing cricket and the Indian cricket legend, M.S. Dhoni is his inspiration and he hopes to be as calm and composed as him during tense situations.

"Life might not be perfect, but the outfit can be." Medha was born and raised in Ludhiana, Punjab. She recently finished her graduation in fashion designing from National Institute of Fashion Technology, Patna. As far as Medha can remember, she has loved playing with fabric, cutting it into pieces and trying to stitch it togther using her mother's sewing machine. Medha is quick to pick any fashion trend and loves experimenting with quirky designs. Apart from that, she loves to travel and discover interesting experiences and inspirations.

"A little flower never hurt anybody." Jibin comes from god's own country, Kerela. Since a very young age, Jibin loved making floral arrangements. During festivals, he would help his mother decorate the house with flowers and over time expanded his knowledge about the varieties of flowers. Born with a creative flair, Jibin decided he would pursue his interest as his profession. He is prepared to enthrall the international audience with his skills.

"Anyone who said teal and turquoise are the same colours never had a graphic designer as a friend." Shewta has known her passion from a very young age - right from enrolling for art and painting classes since she was 8, to studying at the National Institue of Design, Ahmedabad. Shweta considers herself lucky as she has found her true calling and passion and can follow that path. Apart from graphic design, she is fond of reading books and always seeking creative energy from them.

"Having a good hair day? We make it happen every day." The youngest in his family, Utkarsh hails from Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. Currently, training at the Blossom Kochhar College of Creative Arts and Design, he has his eyes set on winning a medal for his country at Worldskills Kazan, to turn this dream into reality. The journey to WorldSkills has not only enabled his talent as a hairdresser but has contributed significantly to his personality. He shares, “From a careless boy with no objectives, I have grown to become national champion with the only aim of bringing gold for my country.” Apart from being a talented hairdresser, Utkarsh enjoys playing cricket and football and loves to travel.

"The healthiest man, is the wealthiest." Since childhood, Thasleem has been passionate about improving the health and social care conditions in India. Having heard several instances of poor health conditions, she was determined to contribute. Thus, to contribute to the noble cause of making affordable healthcare universally available, she completed her Diploma in Dialysis Technology from Apollo Medskills, Chennai. She is now participating with the aim of learning, and honing her skills in the process, while not forgetting her ultimate vision: making India proud.

"They may forget your identity, but they should never forget how you made them feel at your hotel." Born and brought up in Shimla, Abhinav is a an optimistic and outgoing boy. After graduating from Institute of Hotel Management, Aurangabad with flying colours, he began working with the Taj Group, achieveing new pinnacles each day. His zeal for perfection can be substantiated by observing the way in which he aced the selection contests, to finally become the only one in the skill to reserve a place for himself at WorldSkills Kazan, while also giving India the opportunity to participate in a new skill. At Kazan, he looks forward to solving each task given to him in a timely manner, and with utmost perfection.

"Reach the peak, but never let your feet off the ground." Discipline and the love for her country, have always been a part of Divya's upbringing, given that she comes from an army background. Participating in WorldSkills is Divya's way of fulfilling her commitment to the country. Divya, being extremely passionate about Electronics & Telecommunication, is pursuing her Bachelors degree from MIT Academy of Engineering, Pune. Despite being at the beginners level, she has managed to beat several experienced professionals to become the finalist for WorldSkills Kazan, making it clear to the country that she is the best at whatever she does.

"Is it technology, or is it magic? Who can say." Gursheesh is one person who can not stop talking about football. Ask him anything, and he can recite the entire wikipedia page out for you. While keeping his love for the game alive, he is also very keen about IT, coding to be precise. His life revolves around these two things. Having completed his education from Chandigarh College of Engineering and Technology, Gursheesh is adept at computers, and enjoys making new programs from scratch, while improving existing ones.

"Diamond is only a piece of coal, that handled pressure a little too well." Son of a farmer, Sanjoy has talent that is unmatchable. Coming from a humble background, Sanjoy has struggled to reach where he is today. From not having a permanent house to live in, to being the consequtive winner of IndiaSkills 2016 and 2018, his journey is the perfect example of where perseverance and dedication can take a person. He represented India at Global Skill Challenge, Australia and WorldSkills National France, where he stood 3rd and 2nd respectively. Having learnt the nitty gritties of jewellery design, Sanjoy looks forward to using his acquired knowledge, to make his family, and the nation proud.

"Skill is better than strength." As it is said, when the mind is strong, material circumstances are no excuse. Having lived in a small village of Rajasthan all his life, Vikash never ceases to be dumbfounded by the amazing buildings, and pieces of home décor that he sees in the metropolitan cities. Preparing in the skill of joinery, Vikash has come a long way. Son of a carpenter, Vikash hopes to make his family proud with his skill, dedication and passion to create an impact.

"When the current is against you, that's when you know you're on the right path." A bright and humorous child since his childhood, Xenophon has always been the source of laughter for his family. Even in difficult times, he managed to bring a smile to his family's face. He has always been impressed by machines, and started brushing up his knowledge on the same at a very tender age. Today, he has become an expert on how machines work, and has made numerous designs from scratch. His journey, from having bear means of survival, to now representing India internationally has been nothing short of miraculous. He is the perfect example of how hardwork always pays off.

"Believe in yourself, only that will keep you going." Sumanth is a mechatronics technician working as maintenance member at Toyota Kirloskar Motor, a leading automobile company. His father, a security guard has always tried to give their children the best. The oppportunity to represent his state and now his country, was beyond imagination for Sumnath's family. He hopes to excel at his skill and make his family proud.

"If you can dream it, you can achieve it." Manjunatha hails from a small village in Karantaka and has been throug many challenges. His father is a farmer and mother a house maker. Their dedication to provide for the family has led to Manju believing in his dreams and creating his own ambitions. He is currently working as a maintenance member in Toyota, a leading automobile company. An agile and friendly co-worker, Majnu is a ‘problem solver’ amongst his team members and is recognized for finding unique solutions for technical issues.

"Robots are not supplements of human labour, but rather complements." Since his childhood, Omkar has been playing around with robots. Watching his father operate huge machines in factories, decided to create machines himself. In order to make himself able of the same, he opted for Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering course at MIT, Pune. Being a keen and an enthusiastic learner, Omkar has volunteered in various events like the 5th National Level Junior Robocon competition and the Sci-Con 17 event. The people who know him describe him as a very hardworking and a passionate human being, who puts his heart and soul into everything that he does.

"When you want to understand how machines work, study them when they are crumbling apart." Rohan's mother is a painter, father an army veteran. At present, Rohan is pursuing his B-Tech degree in Electronics. For an engineering student, you would expect him to be glued to their video games in their free time. However, for Rohan, his main source of relaxation is sketching buildings and airplanes. He believes this stimulates his mind, and helps him enhance his mental-iteration. He wants to improve the infrastuctural situation of the country, and help India reach new heights, literally.

"There is so no Earth without art" Majoring in Fine Arts from the Government College of Arts, Chandigarh, Sahil absolutely adores painting. Even though his expertise lies in digital painting, he took up painting and decorating, due to his urge to try and master new skills. In the past, he has designed illustrations for the Punjab Government and ITBP Police. He is also the recipient of the Satish Gujral Award for the most outstanding work in painting, 2019. Digressing from painting, Sahil has also received second award in "State Vocation in Textile Design".

"View them as opportunities, not obstacles." Since the very early days of his life, Saurabh has been obsessed with cakes. He not only consumes them, but each time that he buys a cake, he stands intrigued by how the confectioners make it look so irresistable and appealing. The turning point in Saurabh's life came when he lost his father at a very tender age. But instead of letting grief weigh him down, he pulled himself up and came out as a stronger person. A student of Institute of Hotel Management, Saurabh brought India pride and recognition by winning gold medal in UK Skills Competition and bronze at Global Skills Challenge Australia.

"Go big, or go home." Raji hails from a small village in Telangana, where his father worked as a farmer and his mother, a home maker. Being the sole earning member of his family, Raji also helps his widowed sister financially to manage her house. After tremendous struggle, he is now working with one of the leading interior design companies, Decorhome India Private Ltd, in the department of plastering & drywall. His hardwork and consistency has resulted in his elevation to the post of a supervisor. His skill requires a high degree of accuracy and care, along with the ability to solve complex mathematical problems. Raji is the first amongst his family members to visit a foreign country.

"Trust me, 'Oh no's' are better than 'what ifs'." Belonging from Tamil Nadu, M Vishwanathan's father is a Technical Consultant and his mother, an accountant. But he decided to take the road less taken. He recently completed his Diploma in Tool & Die Engineering from Gedee Technical Training Institute Coimbatore, and is now undergoing an year long Industrial Training. Passionate about learning and exploring new things, he is now adept at mould making, mould design and manufacturing using CAD/CAM software and CNC Machining. He is thrilled to go to Kazan, and challenge his fellow contenders.

"Your body can stand almost everything, it’s the mind that needs to be conqured." A final year civil engineering student from Chitkara University, Himanshu's passion and skill in plumbing has secured his place in WorldSkills Kazan. In order to gain more exposure, he participated in the Global Skills Competition in Australia, and also underwent a 20 day training under Finland's experts. At the tender age of 18, he has gained paramount experience. Additionally, he enjoys equipping himself with additional knowlege, by reading books, and keeps himself fit by going on a run everyday.

"Your beliefs are what separate you from the rest." Residing in Patharhadi in Ahmednagar, a small town in Maharashtra, Shrenik's father runs a printing shop for a living. Post realising the integral role that print media technology plays in any industry, whether small, medium or large, Shrenik decided to pursue Printing Engineering and Graphics Communication, and wishes to make a career out of the same.To gain more exposure, he participated in Taitaja 2019, Skils Finland competition and also, went to Heidelberg, Germany for perfecting his skills. Born with an inquisitive mind, Shrenik loves reading about new technological advances in the world.

"There is no set mantra for success, each person has their own journey." Abhishek is working with one of the leading car manufactures of India, Toyota Kirloskar Motor Private Ltd. Being a prototype engineer, Abhishek excels at a range of skills including 3D CAD systems, CAM systems such as milling, vacuum casting, prototype model making by hand tools and machines, spray painting and finishing. Coming from a family of farmers, his path has been full of turbulances. But as it is said, all's well that ends well. The 20 year old visualizes himself winning a medal for the nation, and making India proud.

"You are not failing, if you're learning." Having his roots in Haryana, Rahul Jangra is currently undergoing skill training in government-led Industrial Training Institute (ITI) in Hathin, Haryana. Belonging to a humble background, Rahul wants to become an excellent technician in refrigeration and airconditioning. He has constantly made sure his ambitions aren't deflected by his social and financial difficulties.

"If there's anything I've learned it's simply that if you have a dream, there's only one choice: PURSUE" As a child, Vaidehi's family relocated a lot, exposing her to a multitude of cultures like those from Jamaica, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Qatar. While her father is a hotelier, her mother works at the British Council. Following her father's footsteps, she is pursuing her graduation from Institute of Hotel Management, Pusa. On a regular day, Vaidehi hits the gym early in the morning, followed by meticulous training with her trainer at the restaurant; observing, absorbing and focusing on every little detail. At Kazan, she works towards making the Indian anthem resonate in the halls of Kazan.

"My high in life is striving for that Gold at WorldSkills." In one word, Ankit is the chirpiest boy amongst all participants. Whenever he is de-motivated, give him delicious food, and he is back to being his up beat self. Pursuing his bachelors degree from NIFT Bangalore, Ankit is a strong propogant of the direct impact of graphic design on everyday life, and is ready to defeat anyone in a debate. His journey of training under experts has been an eye opening experience for him, making him realise the surfeit opportunities available to him, professionally.

"Strive for knowledge, not success." Mohammed Rabith's father is a coolie, or a porter. Understandably, his household income has been scarce. Carrying the weight of uplifting his family on his shoulders, he decided to undertake skill training in tiling. As his training progressed, he started understanding the intricacies of the process, and started to fall in love with the beauty of the skill. Today, he is the finalist who will be representing India internationally. He is content with the experience and exposure that IndiaSkills has given him, and wishes to give his best, whatever the outcome may be.

"Work hard in silence, let your medals make all the noise." The paucity of water on Earth, and the urge to do something about preventing this critical source from depleting motivated Aswatha to take up water technology as his skill. His love for industrial automation pushed him to win a gold at IndiaSkills 2018, and he hopes to not only replicate, but enhance his performance at Kazan. Aswatha has several achievements accredited to himself, the Award of Excellence in Industrial Automation training, 1st in Automated Robotics event (state level) held at IIIT Bhubaneswar, 2nd in DrishTI – Online Contest in Circuit Design & Digital Signal Processing held by Texas Instruments amongst a multitude of others.

"You are you, and that is your superpower." At the age of 17, when most students are trying to manage school, Pranav from Karnataka managed to affix his place in WorldSkills Kazan. His fervour for IT can be traced back to his father's profession, who is the General Manager at a leading Artificial Intelligence company. When most students play video games, Pranav was busy completing a three-month internship at Razorthink Technologies, aiding them in finding viable solutions to various technical issues. He has taken part in IndiaSkills three times, and each attempt featured him displaying magnificent capabilities.

"You are your only limit." Defying all odds, Golipally is successfully employed with Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. Coming from a family of farmers, he did not have much in hand when he started. However, his never die attitude compelled him to give it all. Today, he possesses knowledge about all forms of welding. He was the second runner up at IndiaSkills 2017, the 'Best Welder' at the regional competition and an integral part of CII's WorldSkills Competition. With the blessings of his entire village in Telangana, Golipally is optimistic of putting up a great show.