Derek O' Brien needs no introduction. He is the man who has made quizzing fashionable in the country. The man conducts over 100 quizzes every year and has been the quiz master for the longest running corporate knowledge game show, The Brand Equity Quiz. Despite all his achivements, the man is as humble as they come, quick with words and a great sense of humour...Derek is a pleasure to talk to...here's an excerpt from his chat with the media during the launch of The Cadbury, Bournvita Quiz Contest -- Confidence Challenge.

Derek O' Brien

How did this idea germinate?
Well, couple of years ago, we had included a five minute segment on BQC which crowned the Confidence Champion. I noticed that my ten year old daughter would only watch that segment and ignore the rest! I thought that's it...this is the next step that we should be looking at. I talked it out with Cadbury and Sony and things worked out. This is an amazing concept and the whole experience was humbling.

On what basis have these students been selected?
Primarily we were looking at one thing -- a proven skill! That was important and then came the levels of confidence and then we took it from there. It was difficult to zoom in on the 90!

You said that these kids have immense confidence....but...
There is a very thin line between confidence and over confidence! We had some kids who crossed that line...and we threw them out! This show is all about having a skill and then presenting it in a great way! There are kids, as you will see on the show, who are not all-rounders, but great with what they are skilled to do! I hate the term all-rounder! We have a kid on the show who is an under 15 squash champion and she's in the top three in her class as well!

How has quizzing changed in the last decade?
Quizzing had a different meaning in the '70's. Then it meant "recall of the printed word', in the '80's it meant a quicker recall of the printed world as well as the audio-visual and now people have realised that mere knowledge is not enough! This is how quzzing has changed and I belive that we have to change according to the changes in society. When I shot for the Confidence Challenge episodes, I realised that now what we are doing is really something!

Doing what he does best: Derek interacting with kids

How well do these kids take failure?
They tale it well! But I must admit, that girls take it better than boys! It's the parents who can't seem to take it! Then there are the odd ones who make a scene!

You have been working with kids for such a long time...what are the changes that you see in them?
Kids have become very confident now. I am amazed at the talent on display! The parents too have changed. Now they want kids to have extra curricular activities and concentrate on one hobby at a time. I'd rather my kid takes one hobby seriously than be an allrounder!

You seem to have had a makeover....
No, they just shoot me from different angles now!