Vakta- Where public speaking made easy

Balreddy Dommata, who was in public speaking domain for more than a decade, is imparting those skills to the people through his 'Vakta' programme. Having worked on the speech skills of people all along, he knows where and how to start training people. Is public speaking an art? Those into the habit of perfecting it believe so. The skill of public speaking and presenting is both an art and a science. It is an art because to be effective you have to craft and deliver your presentation extremely mindfully and very creatively. Good communication has to be thought about very carefully and prepared for it to be structured and liked by the audience.

The ability to connect emotionally as well as intellectually with an audience doesn't happen by luck. We require those public speaking skills to be presentable in society at every stage. How do we go about it?

Balreddy Dommata, who for more than a decade, is imparting those skills to the people through his 'Vakta' programme. Having worked on the speech skills of people all along, Balreddy knows where and how to start training people. With the help of the Kapil Group's Chairman Vaman Rao, he has been conducting the course to the enthusiasts and turning them into not only good conversationalists but also into excellent speakers.

"Vakta' written by him in a novel form is an interesting story of two friends Chaitanya and Tapasya, both NRIs' with varied interests. The journey of the two students, one from Telangana and one from Andhra Pradesh is told in a simple but captivating manner. The story line is simple. It graphically details the growth of the two ordinary students into skillful speakers who put it to good use later on as they climb the ladder of success.

Not a page of dull or drab presentation, 'Vakta' makes a racy reading. But, this is not just a short novel or a long story and inherent to the 178 page book is the lucid presentation of Art of Speaking. Balreddy blends his experience to impart those skills to readers through the two heroes and friends. In doing so, he systematically builds the case of the 'Art of Speaking'.

The writer teaches through the characters the importance of body language, voice modulation and language skills, which are primary requisites of a good speaker. As Chaitnya, the main character, explains the ice-breaking skills to interactive methods to careful guidance into the topic, the readers - or shall we say the audience - effortlessly grasp the purpose of the writer. Many authors attempted to write on life skills, success etc in the past but the narrative gets bogged down somewhere and sounds more like a lecture.

However, the readers could identify themselves with the characters easily due to the 'life woven' around them and the rootedness comes out strongly. In no time we learn the importance of strategy of speaking and realize that it is not a herculean task to become a good speaker. A very good effort by Balreddy in delivering a good read!