Siddhant Parikh of IGCSE G9 wins Gold in Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition 2025.

Siddhant Parikh of IGCSE Grade 9C has earned the Gold Award in the Senior category of the Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition (QCEC) 2025, the world’s oldest and most prestigious international schools’ writing competition.

 

This year marked a record-breaking participation, with 53,434 entries from across the 55 Commonwealth nations. Siddhant’s work distinguished itself among thousands of submissions from talented young writers around the globe.

 

Of the three topics offered, Siddhant chose to reimagine a well-known Indian folklore in an innovative and thought-provoking way. His piece revisits the Mahabharata legend of Eklavya, unfolding through a surprising multiverse encounter with Karna. Through this imaginative retelling, Siddhant transforms a familiar narrative into a powerful critique of injustice, systemic exclusion, and meritocracy.

 

 

 

By reframing ancient characters in a contemporary lens, he highlights the timeless moral questions embedded in folklore—reminding readers that stories from our past continue to shape our conversations on fairness, dignity, and equality.