It is Season Seven for ITC Classmate's Spell Bee

Targeting students of classes 5-9, the contest aims to reach over 800 schools across 30 cities.

Classmate, a notebook brand by ITC, and Radio Mirchi are back with Season 7 of their spelling competition for school students, Classmate Spell Bee.

The spelling extravaganza, aims to be bigger and better experience than its last season. It will be held in more than 800 schools across 30 cities reaching over 275,000 students from standards 5 to 9. Victor Tango Entertainment has executed the activation in schools.

The initial phase of the competition will comprise of an on-ground exercise where children will be given spelling tests in schools. Top scorers from the school level will battle it out in the city finale round and the best performing students will make it to the semi-finals from there.

The top 10 students from each city will then appear for an online test to choose the best 16 spellers from across India. These students will then battle it out in the grand finale to win the title of Classmate Spell Bee Champion.

Students from around India can also participate online at www.classmatespellbee.in. The national finalists will get to showcase their skills on national television on The Discovery Channel, Discovery Kids and Discovery Tamil. The National Champion will get a grand prize of Rs 2 lakh, apart from the opportunity to witness (with a parent) the prestigious Scripps National Spelling Bee 2015 in Washington DC.

The theme for the competition - 'Every child is unique and so is every word' - centres around the brand's philosophy of celebrating uniqueness. Commenting on the launch, Chand Das, CEO, ITC's Education and Stationery Products Business says. "Classmate has always endeavoured to recognise, nurture and celebrate the uniqueness of every child. Classmate Spell Bee season 7 builds on the scale we achieved last year with the aim of reaching out to an even larger number students across schools and cities in India, through a school contact programme coupled with a novel mobile app and a dedicated website to engage students."

Hitesh Sharma, executive president, Entertainment Network (India), says, "Having started off as a spelling competition, Spell Bee is a landmark event that propagates the English language at the highest level. What is heartening to see is the love that it receives from children, parents and teachers of India and how its popularity grows each year. Like every year, the competition will be televised to encourage students to showcase their skills on a national platform and prepare for the upcoming season."

Tabassum Modi, director, Victor Tango Entertainment, says, "It is one of the most sought after competitions in the country for kids and a very smart way to engage with this tricky TG." The competition this year is powered by The Times of India and is in association with Seven Seas and Air India. Times NIE are education partners on the property.