Prashant Pandey: The Luminary Behind Global Child Prodigy Awards
Prashant Pandey is a youth advocate and an entrepreneur. At just 28, he is the CEO and Co-founder of the groundbreaking social organization, ‘Global Child Prodigy‘ – a unique initiative that celebrates and nurtures child prodigies across the globe.
For over four years, Prashant Pandey has been dedicated to supporting young talent. He has helmed and executed over 450 national and international events, reaching out to more than 85,000 students, enlightening and motivating countless young minds. His exceptional discipline, dedication, focus, and passion have sculpted his path, establishing him as a paragon among young entrepreneurs championing social change and child development.
Early Life and Education
Originating from a middle-class family in a quaint town in Bihar, Prashant Pandey embodies the mantra, “Hard work pays off.” An academically gifted student with a rich portfolio of extracurricular achievements, he completed his schooling at Kendriya Vidyalaya New Cantt, Allahabad, UP. Later, he pursued a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science and Engineering at Sathyabama University, Chennai. His outstanding academic performance earned him the “Star of Excellence – Best Student” award in 2016. Notably, Prashant is the first in his family to graduate from college.
Student Leadership
Beyond academics, Prashant’s extracurricular accolades are impressive. A staunch advocate of leading by example, he has actively participated in various student organizations concentrating on societal challenges. In 2014, he was elected the President of the ECO Club, which under his diligent leadership became the most vibrant club on campus.
That same year, Prashant was recognized as a Student Ambassador by Google India, one of just 177 across India. With this role, he founded the ‘Google Student Club (GSC)’ at Sathyabama University, orchestrating over 60 events and workshops within and beyond the campus.
In 2015, he ascended to the position of Vice-Chairman of the IEEE Computer Society at Sathyabama University. Leveraging this role, he arranged various workshops and seminars to deepen student understanding of diverse concepts. The same year, he was named a Core Committee Member of IYONS (International Youth NGOs Summit), an organization envisioned to empower youth leaders across 120 countries to catalyze societal transformation.
Entrepreneurial Journey
Prashant Pandey’s Quora bio succinctly describes him: “Engineer by education, Writer by heart, Entrepreneur by choice.” True to this, Prashant’s journey serves as an inspiration. At a juncture where he had lucrative job offers from tech giants like Infosys and Cognizant, he chose the entrepreneurial path. Driven by passion and determination, he rejected conventional routes to champion young talent.
His entrepreneurial foray began with ‘365 Days Event’, advocating “Everyday is an Event.” Under this banner, he coordinated myriad successful events nationwide. He also integrated into the Core Team of the Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam International Foundation, orchestrating numerous events, including the commemoration of Dr. Kalam’s 86th Birthday at Rashtrapati Bhavan, where he had the honor of meeting the Indian President, Shri Ramnath Kovind.
Global Child Prodigy Awards (GCPA)
“I recall an eight-year-old version of myself penning heartfelt verses for his mother, earning accolades in school poetry competitions. Despite my zeal, I lacked the mentorship and platform to shine. I was that child,” reflects Prashant.
Understanding the challenges he faced, Prashant, post-graduation, identified a gap in the opportunities and mentorship available for child prodigies. This realization birthed the Global Child Prodigy Awards.
“We at GCP believe every child, when furnished with the appropriate platform, guidance, and mentorship, can transcend perceived limits, impacting society profoundly. Our mission is to recognize talent in its myriad forms – from dance and painting to astrology and poetry. Through exhaustive research and screening, we identify prodigious talent across disciplines,” articulates Prashant about his vision for GCP.
In 2017, the awards were inaugurated by the globally renowned musician and Oscar winner, Shri A R Rahman. By 2019, under the leadership of Prashant, the GCP team managed to secure seed funding from GlowWorms Ventures, Bangalore. GlowWorms Ventures, founded by Anjaneya Kumar Jha, Shyam Choudhary, and Om Thoke, recognized the potential of the GCP team and chose to invest in their vision.
The GCP Awards ceremonies were hosted in esteemed venues like Dubai in 2022, under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Nahayan Mubarak Al Nahayan, and New Delhi in 2020, with distinguished attendees including Nobel Peace Laureate Shri Kailash Satyarthi and Dr. Kiran Bedi, the Honorable Lt. Governor of Puducherry. The launch was orchestrated by music maestro A.R. Rahman. The awards have garnered global recognition, with media giants like the BBC and Times among its endorsers.
Prashant remains deeply committed to GCP, guided by his fervent vision of gifting global platforms to prodigious young talents, ensuring they have a profound societal impact. Under his leadership, GCP has achieved meteoric success in a relatively short timeframe.