Toastmasters International WCPS Semifinal 1- Review- Shayak Chandra

You can watch it here:

 https://www.toastmasters.org/events/2020-international-convention/agenda

Scroll down to the end to know my Top 2 from the Semifinal 1

My favorite Contestant is at No: 4 💗

Smooth conduct of the contest with a very poised contest chair Anthoney Longley, DTM

Contestant 1: Cyril Junior Jim

Speech Title: The Power of Silence

Talks about being a Sponge with a humorous statement- "The more you punish me the more I soak it in."

Message- By remaining silent when provoked, I chose to fight in a different way. Don't get provoked by people who know no better. Choosing silence in scenarios while proving a point. Revenge now or the last laugh tomorrow. Silence is the ultimate weapon. Fight a different way. Put down your fist... and hold back sharp words. 

Salient Features: Good Poise: Intense and Purposeful eye contact. Great use of the tie as a prop. Hits the chord of millions because of the ongoing trends of humanity.

Rating: 7.5/ 10

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Contestant 2: Kitty Brandal

Speech Title: Crunchy People

A good message that urges the world to see it with other person eyes

Talks about the Fast paced world we live in where we don't feel each other pain

Inspires to embrace the spirit of empathy

Draws demarcation between Grace and Compassion on one side and Judgement on the other.

The tone seems a bit loud at places and the movements a bit hasty. A more poised performance could have made it magical

Salient Features: Great depiction of low emotions and Open Palm gestures

Rating: 5.5/10

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Contestant 3: Mario Lewis

Speech Title: Size Matters

A sweet performance. Not a great start but a good start with introducing a Drivers Licence.

Message: Talks about himself on being Vertically challenged. Talks about Insecurities.

Height isn't important, focus on the size of your dreams- Loved the way he said this line in the context that he created.

Used the power of three in humour. Girl- Promotion- Toastmasters Speech contest.

Height became the excuse of shortcomings- Great wordplay

The climax of the story: Not Vertically But Mentally Challenged

A lovely correlation:

Martin Luther King was 5'6 and he had a dream and you at least need to have a plan.

Stand tall and pursue dreams.

Salient Features: Good use of Prop. Appreciate his sense of humour. A true reflection of conviction with which he spoke. 

Rating: 7.2/10

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Contestant 4: Mike Carr

Speech Title: Blue

Honestly, he deserves way more than a mere vote from a judge of the contest. 

Erotic start describing a kiss. Wonderful creation of visuals through words. 

Just watch him in the speech when he attends the funeral of someone whom he loved. I DONOT want to disclose it right now.

Message: Give more time for the one you love the most because you never know how long they are in your life.

Salient Features: A masterpiece of storytelling, great use of words, facial expressions and the best part is the threading of the content with the speech title. It is tranquil!

Rating: 8.9/10

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Contestant 5: Benjamin Wayo

Speech Title: Lighter than air

Intriguing start as he brings two balloons. One flies high and the other drops. 

Followed by a question Why do some balloons fly and other drops? 

The crux of the Speech: Emphasizes "What matters is what's inside"!

Speech on Body-shaming and his struggle to lift himself out of it.

A few gestures were overdone and the way he concluded reminded me of Dananjaya Hettiarachchi.

Salient Features: Great use of Props, Intriguing start. An impactful personal story that can move an audience to an extent.

Rating: 6/10

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Contestant 6: Travis Dent

Speech Title: Its showtime

A good speech. I am not sure but to me, he seemed nervous. But the way he tackled the nervousness throughout deserves applause.

 A speech where he talks about how he faced challenges being a Technical Director of a Newscast. I could not find proper voice modulations while he described several emotions. Also, I found a bit of tension down his throat where he tried to swallow his nervousness down his throat twice in his presentation.

Amazing statement in his speech: Never let what others can't see, determine what you can be!

Salient Features: Amazing control of nerves to a great extent. Appreciate his drive home message for the audience

Rating: 5/10

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Contestant 7: Kim Ng

Speech Title: Stop. Look. Listen

This again was a sweet speech. Not great but not bad. Wonderful screen presence. Repetition of speech title throughout the speech in multiple places.

I thought he was trying to stick to the judges' ballot and that was kind of prohibiting him from being the real at times.

A humorous incident depicted brilliantly where his football gets stuck ina tree. It's hilarious.

Salient Features: Humour, Screen Presence, Voice Modulation

Rating: 6/10

And here comes my Top 2 for this set:

1. Contestant 4- Mike Carr

2. Was tough between Contestant 1- Cyril Junior Jim and Contestant 3- Mario Lewis but I would go for Contestant 1