Champion at the Comic Con says yo-yoing demands focus
At first glance, yo-yos might seem like a relic of the past, a fleeting childhood memory that spun into our lives and events.
ally disappeared. But for Deepankar N., a Delhi-based Telugu-speaking Yo-Yo champion ranked three in the world, it’s an art form, a passion, and a booming culture waiting to make its comeback.
Deepankar’s journey with yo-yos began in 2006, inspired by the show ‘Blazing Teens’. “My mom got me a plastic yo-yo for 20, and I would rush home every day after school to watch the show and practice,” he said, at the Comic Con Hyderabad event. But like many kids back then, access to quality yo-yos was limited, and his hobby faded after a year.
It wasn’t until 2018, when he stumbled upon videos of the World Yo-Yo Contest, that the fire was reignited. “I saw these incredible tricks and realised how much the Yo-Yo had evolved. That’s when I decided to dive back in, importing professional yo-yos and practicing seriously.”
Yo-yoing, Deepankar explains, is a skill that demands focus. “It’s all about precision; 90 percent isn’t enough; you need to be 100 percent accurate for a trick to land,” he says. He trains for three to four hours daily to push the limits of what the yo-yo can do.
Drawing on his back- ground in breakdancing and martial arts, Deepankar has developed
completely unique style, blending yo-yo moves with dance. “I’m the only person in the world doing
this,” he says. Anuj Dawar Anirudh Dawar, founders of YoyoFactory India, spotted his videos online and saw in him not just a champion but a potential ambassador for Yoyo in the country.
Meanwhile, with stories deeply tied to local culture to gaming marathons and epic cosplay, Comic Con Hyderabad Day 2 proved to be as diverse as the people attending it.
The session by Hallu Bol stood out for its refreshing DC take on local Dakhni humor and narratives. Josh Blaylock, the creator behind Devil’s Due Comics, shared his journey of building an indie comic empire.
The DreamHack zone brought gamers together in a way Hyderabad hasn’t seen before. For the first time, the BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) setup made its way here.
Full reports in deccanchronicle.com
