A 5-year old child from Ranchi proved that watching television is not always bad. It can rather be rewarding sometimes.

Ashwik Samanta, a preparatory class student of Jawahar Vidya Mandir, Shyamali, in Ranchi, was appreciated by the India Book of Records for naming 100-odd uncommon creatures in 70 seconds flat. He learnt this by watching wildlife specific television channels.

He was “appreciated for recalling the names of 104 uncommon creatures ... blindfolded in 1 minute 10 seconds, at the age of 5 years 3 months, as confirmed on December 7, 2021”, said the certificate issued by the India Book of Records, adding Ashwik named 26 each of uncommon water animals, reptiles, birds and land animals.

No cash award is given for the achievement and Ashwik got a certificate, a medal, a complimentary copy of the record book and “a nice pen”.

“I learnt those while watching TV channels like Animal Planet and National Geographic that cover wildlife,” the boy replied when asked how he could name so many uncommon creatures within such a short time, adding he also watched YouTube sometimes.

“He somehow grew interest in watching TV programmes on wildlife and we also didn’t discourage as he started learning a lot about the animal world,” said his mother Shovona Choudhury who teaches commerce at the local Amity University.

“I visited zoos in Ranchi and Calcutta and also a bird sanctuary in Bengal,” Ashwik replied when asked if he saw living wildlife, adding he learnt about wildlife mostly by watching TV episodes on various birds and animals.

“Not really, I would rather like to be a veterinary doctor,” the boy replied when asked if he would like to be a teacher like her mother in future or follow his engineer-turned-businessman father Abhishek Samanta.

“If I become a vet, I can treat the animals when they are in pain and help them get relief,” Ashwik tried to justify his choice of career.

“He can decide what he wants to be when he grows up,” his mother said, adding her son becoming a vet would not be a bad choice as “he is always very sympathetic towards animals”.