Meet the 4 students who won big at International Linguistics Olympiad in Taiwan
The Indian team consisted of:Vaageesan Surendran (Chennai) – Gold medalAdvay Misra (Delhi NCR) – Bronze medalNandagovind Anurag (Hyderabad) – Honourable mentionSiripurapu Bhuvan (Hyderabad) – Honourable mentionThey were selected through the Panini Linguistics Olympiad (PLO) and underwent intensive training at IIIT-Hyderabad under Prof Parameswari Krishnamurthy, a long-time academic mentor for the Indian team.VAAGEESAN: POLYGLOT AND PUZZLE WHIZ
Vaageesan Surendran, a 15-year-old Class 11 student at PSBB KK Nagar, Chennai, clinched India's only gold medal this year. With a deep passion for languages, Vaageesan can read 34 different scripts, including Brahmi, Tibetan, and Georgian.He taught himself to read ancient scripts by exploring inscriptions at temples and museums. 'The excitement of uncovering the logic behind how languages evolve is what keeps me hooked,' he shared in earlier interviews.His parents, both engineers, say he's been fascinated by languages since he was six. Besides English and Tamil, he speaks Hindi, Sanskrit, and a bit of Mandarin, and dreams of building tools that preserve endangered languages.ADVAY: THE YOUNGEST MEDALLIST
Advay Misra, just 12 years old, is a student of Heritage Xperiential Learning School, Gurugram. He took home the bronze medal and was among the youngest participants at IOL this year.Advay's love for word puzzles and coding began early. He has previously won the Academic Bee, Science Bee, and International Geography Bee. He often juggles programming, chess, and Olympiad training. 'He learns for fun — not just for marks,' says his mother.advertisementHis sharp logical reasoning helped him stand out, especially in the toughest problem set of the individual round, which involved deducing syntactic rules from unfamiliar tribal languages.NANDAGOVIND: FROM MATH TO LINGUISTICS
Nandagovind Anurag, an 18-year-old student of FIITJEE Junior College, Hyderabad, earned an honourable mention at IOL 2025. Originally a math Olympiad aspirant, he stumbled upon linguistics while exploring logic-based puzzles online.His teachers describe him as a curious, independent learner who thrives in problem-solving environments. Anurag said he was drawn to the way linguistics combines logic, maths, and creativity — much like cracking a code.He now hopes to pursue computational linguistics or AI in college, where he can use his love for patterns in real-world tech.BHUVAN: QUIET THINKER WITH A SHARP EYE
Siripurapu Bhuvan, a student of Narayana Junior College, Hyderabad, also won an honourable mention. Known for his calm, focused presence, Bhuvan stood out in the team rounds and impressed mentors with his meticulous reasoning.advertisementHe particularly enjoyed the team contest at IOL, where participants collaborate to decode language data under time pressure. 'Working with others to solve unfamiliar linguistic challenges showed me the power of teamwork and diverse thinking,' he shared after the event.This was Bhuvan's first time representing India at an international academic competition, and he hopes to mentor younger students preparing for PLO next year.GUIDED BY IIIT-HYDERABADThe team's training was anchored by Prof Parameswari Krishnamurthy of IIIT-Hyderabad, who has been mentoring IOL aspirants since India's first participation.The students attended pre-departure camps in Hyderabad, where they practised with previous years' problems, worked in teams, and got familiar with linguistic theory.
Prof Krishnamurthy noted that the 2025 team had a rare balance — a mix of ages, regions, and strengths. 'They supported each other, pushed boundaries, and stayed humble. Their collaborative spirit was as important as their individual skills,' she said.advertisementA FIRST FOR INDIAIndia has won golds at IOL before — most recently in 2023 and 2019 — but this is the first time all four participants have returned with individual prizes. The team also received an overall Honourable Mention, placing it among the top performing teams internationally.This consistent performance is a testament to the growing interest in logic and language-based Olympiads in India, alongside math and science competitions.WHAT'S NEXT?The students say the Olympiad experience has changed how they view language and logic.'It's not about knowing 10 languages — it's about how we think, how we decode, how we adapt,' said Vaageesan.With plans to explore fields like computational linguistics, natural language processing, and AI, all four are now looking at combining their Olympiad learning with future careers.And for now? They're just savouring the high of representing India — and winning.- Ends
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