M P Mohammed Aadil, a Plus 2 student, just did what he was adept in, but became a star overnight. At the district-level reopening ceremony of Naipuni Skill Development Centres at his school recently, he stunned everyone by showcasing a self-made drone. He is a student of VPP Mohammed Kunji Pattelar Smaraka Govt. Vocational Higher Secondary School (VPPMKPS GVHSS), Thrikaripur, Kasaragod.

Aadil took a week to build the drone for a little over ₹15,000. He brought the drone to enhance the ceremonial fervour and shower flower petals on those gathered for the ceremony.

But it had a rocky start. Heavy wind brought the drone down on the maiden flight of the day. The second try was also not successful, as it flew away uncontrollably. Aadil said he couldn't install a GPS set due to the time constraints. The drone was later recovered. But his efforts were appreciated by all.

He has shown his skill in building drones previously as well. To make the drone for the reopening ceremony, he bought a flight controller board, speed controller, GPS set, motors and propellers, among others. Assembling it has never been a tough task for Aadil, who has been toying with electronic gadgets from childhood. "Dismantling and reassembling toys has been my hobby from a young age. But my parents (father K Mujeeb and mother MP Shafeena) started encouraging me only after I was in class IV," Aadil tells Onmanorama.

Aadil has gained attention through his hard work in robotics, creating numerous small devices. He recently even taught robotics to teachers during a teacher-training programme, demonstrating his self-made robots. He started building things, including toys, from a very young age.

His latest creation is a 'delivery robot' that can be controlled from home to fetch items from a shop. He has also built other robots to help with studies, serve food, and even clean the house.

Aadil, who is studying computer science along with Assistant Robotics in Plus 2, dreams of becoming a robotics engineer. "I have a lot of other dreams, too. Establishing a robotics company and gaining patents for devices I plan to invent are some of them," Aadil quips.