Fancy dress

Finding a suitable subject for the annual fancy dress competition is often a headache for parents. This year I had two ideas in mind - Peter Pan and boxing champion Mary Kom - for Mira but in the end we had very little time to prepare.
Though it is generally held on Children's Day, Nov. 14, the announcement came a week earlier and I had not found the material for either of my subjects.It had to be done in a hurry since we had already planned an extended weekend vacation in the days preceding the competition. In the end, it was a hotch-potch effort after arriving from our holiday destination.
Mira's class teacher advised her to go for the Peter Pan costume. I found the costumes for the boxer (we already had the boxing gear) as well as Pan. V hunted for a beret to go as PP's cap. Unlike in the West where readymade costumes are available, here Peter Pan is one of the less popular children's heroes. I didnt find the pixie shoes, so we made do with a pair of Bata shoes (and I couldnt be bothered to turn it green).

I gave her the smallest of dialogues to recite, and she had mastered 3 sentences each on Peter Pan and Mary Kom. But it was nothing much - most children parroted long speeches,some adding a song for effect.
In the end, the most common of the fancy dress topics won - an angel. But the girl spoke well and long. So did a girl attired in newspaper bits, fisherman, mobile phone etc. Mira looked crestfallen though she got a complimentary prize for participation. She had spoken well and confidently though the lines were not substantial. This was her last chance, as the competition is only for the KG and Class I and II students. It was a good thing she had the desire the participate.
It was a pity that a child dressed as a bunch of grapes (with balloons around his body making his movement strenuous) didnt win any.
For those looking for fancy dress themes, here are some from today's: child labourer, construction worker (woman), kerala woman, kathakali artist, doctor, teacher, Bharatiar, Swami Vivekananda, jute bag/girl, pastor, John the Baptist, David the Shepherd, peacock etc.
p.s. For someone in the editing line, I found some of the dialogues grammatically incorrect. Many kids used childrens as the plural of child.