What does it take to win a Japanese speech contest? For the winners of the 2025 ASIA to JAPAN Hirameki Japanese Language Speech Contest in partnership with Dai-ichi Life Techno Cross Co., Ltd., it’s a mix of perseverance, self-awareness, insight, and a touch of humor.
Held in May 2025 in Pune, the contest provided a platform for Japanese language learners to showcase their speaking skills, express creativity, and build confidence.
The contest featured two categories: the Junior Category for JLPT N4-level students and the Senior Category for JLPT N3 or N2-level students. In this article, you’ll discover how the winners learned Japanese, their preparation for the contest, and the inspiration behind their speeches.
Meet The Winner For Senior Category — Shriram
A college student majoring in Computer Science and Cybersecurity at the Chennai Institute of Technology, Shriram has been balancing his studies with learning Japanese. After studying the language for a little over a year, he took on the challenge of participating in the Hirameki Japanese Language Speech Contest.
His humorous and inspiring speech about procrastination, drawn from his own experiences, secured him the win.
Q&A with Shriram
1. What was the inspiration for your speech? How did you prepare for the contest?
While scrolling through social media, I came across a meme about procrastination. I found it very funny and relatable! From there, the inspiration just flowed, and I started writing down whatever came to my mind. Over time, I refined it even more. When I was confident enough, I showed the initial draft to my sensei, and the advice I got was to make it more interesting — and so I did.
I recorded myself delivering the speech and watched it back to see where my speech lacked. It took about 50 revisions before I was satisfied with the final version. The videos are still actually on my phone. It’s a good memory, after all. Haha!
Even though I had prepared immensely, during the contest, I still felt panicked. I was in a new city and about to deliver a speech in front of everyone. Thankfully, my friends and teachers calmed me down, and I got my confidence back.
My nervousness disappeared once I said the first word in my speech. I got into the zone and just delivered it as practiced. I really didn’t think I would win because the other contestants’ speeches blew me away. I’m so thankful, and I wouldn’t have been able to do it without the support and guidance of my family, friends, and my wonderful teachers. It’s a life-changing experience!
2. Were there any specific techniques or tips you found helpful in improving your Japanese?
The thing is, I’m lucky I had the best teachers — Aniket Sensei, Toshada Sensei, Swara Sensei, and Madura Sensei — with whom I could be open about where I was struggling and where I needed support.
Other advice I would give to other students who are just starting to learn Japanese:
Be Consistent.
There was a time when I also had a challenge with being consistent since I’m managing both my college studies and learning Japanese. Once I was more consistent with my efforts in learning Japanese, that’s when I improved a lot. If you decide that you’re going to do one hour every day, you must do one hour every day. Don’t push it for the weekend and study for five hours. It is not going to work. Consistency is the key.
Make Friends With Other Japanese Language Learners.
Once you find a community, and you study as a group, it becomes easier. You can solve problems with them and practice with each other without judgment.
How did I find my community? I went to a trade event in Chennai. During the trade event, there was a specific block for all the Japanese companies. I went there and found a lot of people like me who are interested in Japanese companies. So I made a lot of friends there!
3. What’s your next goal in your Japanese learning journey?
I want to continue to improve my Japanese and to attain a level of fluency to secure a job with a Japanese company. Last year, I came to Japan at the Kyushu Institute of Technology for a research internship. I really enjoyed my time there, and it solidified my wish to work and live in Japan in the future.
Highlights of Shriram’s Speech
| Hello everyone. Have you ever thought, “There’s always tomorrow,” or “I’ll do it later?” Me too. A month ago, I read an interesting sentence on social media: “Life is between ‘I’ll do it later’ and ‘I wish I’d done it sooner.'” When I read this, I thought, “That’s so true.” Today, I want to talk about the “pitfalls of saying ‘I should do it later.'” | 皆さん、こんにちは。「あしたがある」、「後でやろう」と思ったことがありますか。私もあります。一か月前、SNSで面白い文を一つ読みました。「人生は、『あとでやろう』と『もっと早くやっておけばよかったな』の間にあります」。これを読んで、「本当だね」と思いました。今日は、「あとでやろうという落とし穴」について話したいと思います。 |
| Can I tell you a secret? It’s a secret. Please don’t tell anyone. | 皆さん、ここだけの話をしてもいいですか？内緒ですよ。絶対に、他の人に言わないでくださいね |
| When I entered college, there were a lot of cute girls in my class. One of them was particularly my type. When I saw her for the first time, for some reason, my heart started beating fast. You can probably relate to that feeling, right? I desperately wanted to talk to her. But days passed, telling myself, “I’ll talk to her tomorrow. I’ll definitely talk to her tomorrow. Tomorrow is my lucky day, so I’ll do it tomorrow.” And so, days passed. Then, one day, I suddenly realized that another guy had talked to her first, and they were dating. | 大学に入学した時、私のクラスには可愛い女の子が大勢いました。その中の一人が特に私のタイプでした。初めて彼女を見て、なぜか心がドキドキしました。皆さんも、そういう気持ち、分かりますよね？何とかして、彼女に話しかけたかったんです。でも、「明日話そう。必ず明日話す。明日はついてる日だから、明日にしよう」って毎日思って、何日も過ぎていきました。そうしているうちに、ある日、気がついたら、他の男が先に彼女に話しかけて、付き合うことになっていました。 |
| So, I’d like to share a technique I came up with. 1: Find a friend you can trust. 2: Give that friend money. 3: Tell them they don’t have to pay you back if you don’t finish a task on time. 4: Don’t cheat. | 私が皆さんに自分で編み出した技を一つ紹介します。 ステップ１：信頼できるような友達を見つけること。 ステップ２：その友達にお金を渡すこと。ステップ ３：あるタスクが時間までに終わらなかったら、お金を返さなくていいと言うこと。 ステップ４：ズルをしないこと。 |
| Because it costs money, you can’t say, “I’ll do it later.” When I applied for this competition and when I was writing this speech, my 100 rupees were in my friend’s pocket. Thanks to them, I’m standing here before you today. I encourage you to try this technique too. Time waits for no one. That’s why it’s important to do things now, not later. Everyone, start doing even small things right away, starting today. Your future self will surely be grateful that you did it right away, and that you didn’t put it off. | お金がかかっているので、「後でやろう」と言えなくなります。この大会に応募したときも、このスピーチを書いていた時も、私の100ルピーは私の友達のポケットにありました。そのおかげで、今日ここで皆さんの前に立っています。皆さんも是非この技を活用してみてください。時間は誰のためにも待ってくれません。だからこそ、「後で」ではなく、「今」やることが大切です。皆さんも、今日から小さなことでもすぐに始めてみましょう。きっと未来の自分が、「あの時すぐやってよかった」「後回ししなくてよかった」と感謝するでしょう。 |
Meet The Winner For Junior Category — Kinjal
A graduate in Pharmacy from Dr. Bhanuben Nanavati College of Pharmacy, Mumbai University, Kinjal is currently studying Japanese at the University of Pune. A passionate admirer of Japanese culture and media, her winning speech is a heartfelt and witty tale about her desire to own Crayon Shin-chan’s iconic kotatsu (a traditional Japanese heating device).
Q&A with Kinjal
1. What was the inspiration for your speech? How did you prepare for the speech?
I must admit, I spent an embarrassingly long time trying to decide what I wanted to speak about. After thinking about it for a while, I figured I wanted to talk about something different yet personal. I wanted to tell a story. So, I spent some time digging through my experiences and memories, and finally thought of something that connected my thoughts to Japan long before I decided to learn Japanese in the present.
Once I had the initial draft prepared, I read it out to my family. They didn’t really understand much but were supportive nonetheless. Then, I recorded it and sent it forward for the first round. I honestly did not expect to go any further than that. But then, when the finalists were announced and my name was also on the list, I felt a little overwhelmed, unsure of how to go forward.
Luckily, I had the most supportive teachers, and they helped me work through the whole script line by line. They smoothened the slightly unnatural phrases and suggested better vocabulary, and made my speech have a cleaner flow. I even spent a lot of time reciting the fixed versions of the speech in front of them to make sure my pitch, pronunciation, and intonation were correct. Finally, it all came down to the amount of confidence I could build before going on stage to deliver the speech in front of a larger audience.
2. How did you feel while delivering it? What was it like to win the contest?
If I am being honest, I do not remember much about the actual delivery of the speech. I mostly felt like I was functioning on autopilot. Reciting the speech like I had done countless times in front of my teachers and my well-meaning but blank-faced family. I tried to keep in mind everything I was suggested to do on stage, but the main agenda was just not to trip and fall when I was getting on and off the stage.
It still feels a bit unreal that I actually won. The contestants that I sat with were all so good and had such interesting topics to talk about, I was not expecting much from the results. I couldn’t fathom the possibility of winning until they actually called my name on stage. The part after the announcement was amazing, of course, so many people came up to me with genuine congratulations and compliments. The overall environment was also so cheerful. I loved seeing my parents and friends, and teachers be so excited for me. It was a wonderful experience, overall.
3. What advice would you give to other students who are just starting to learn Japanese or preparing for a speech contest?
I understand that attempting to give a speech, in general, is an intimidating task. Doing it in a language that you are still in the process of learning makes it look even more unachievable. I remember having seen another event of people giving speeches in Japanese and thinking it would be next to impossible for me to do the same. But taking the task at hand, one step at a time, makes it easier. You also realize that you have people to guide and help you through it at every step. So, you are not alone in the process.
The simple advice I have (for both the language acquisition and the speech contest) is to take that first brave step of attempting it, and the rest will fall into place. You get to learn a lot throughout the process. And regardless of the outcome, what I think you will realize is that you are capable of a lot more than what you give yourself credit for.
4. What’s your next goal in your Japanese learning journey?
The next goal… is to visit Japan and learn more, of course. Maybe even get a chance to work there. It felt like a dream that I might achieve in some distant future. But thanks to the contest for this opportunity, my teachers, Swara Sensei, Vaishali Sensei, and Toshada Sensei, for their guidance and support, AtoJ Hirameki for hosting this event, and of course DLTx for sponsoring the same, the dream has become tangible and real. I hope I can do this opportunity justice and do my best with it.
Highlights of Kinjal’s Speech
| Speaking of history, let me talk about the history of me and the kotatsu. The story is from when I was around 10 years old. And it started when I first saw a warm, blue kotatsu with Shin-chan snuggled in it. | では、歴史といえば、私と こたつの 歴史をおしえます。私が 10歳くらいだった とき の話です。きっかけは、青いこたつに 入っていた シンちゃん です。 |
| The moment I saw that on TV, I felt so excited, I knew I needed one, no matter what. So, my sisters and I begged our parents. “Let’s sell the dining table in our house and get a new kotatsu”, we pleaded. While my parents were impressed by our building interest in Japanese culture from TV, my idea was immediately rejected. But we kept on. And then, after ages and ages of begging, finally, a small, cute kotatsu was brought into the house. | テレビで それを 見たしゅんかん、とても 気持ち よさそうで、どうしても こたつが ほしくなりました。だから、私と 妹たちは 両親に「うちに ある ダイニングテーブルを 売って、新しい こたつを 買おう！」と ねだりました。両親は、私たちが アニメを 見て、日本文化に きょうみを 持っている ことに 感動していましたが、私の アイデアが すぐさんせい しませんでした。でも 何度も何度もねだったあと、やっと、冬休みに 小さな こたつが 家にやってきました。 |
| And, as expected, it was the most wonderful thing! | やっぱり、すてきな 物でした！ |
| Now, as I grow older, I realize just how happy I was inside that kotatsu. Which is why I believe, “Isn’t kotatsu just another symbol of happiness?” The kotatsu was built as a refuge from the cold, harsh winters. Returning from outside to snuggle into the warm kotatsu’s blanket can make a place feel like home. And doesn’t sharing that warmth of the kotatsu with your loved ones become a way to define pure happiness? | 大人になって いくと、こたつに 入っていた 自分が いかに 「しあわせ」だったか わかります。だから、こたつは「しあわせ」のシンボル ではないか と思います。こたつは 寒い冬から ひなんじょとして 作られました。家に帰って、暖かい 毛布に もぐりこむと、その 場所は 居場所に なります。愛している 人々と こたつの 温もりを 分け合うという 気持ちは 「しあわせ」じゃなくてなんでしょう？ |
| That is why, in my honest opinion, if everyone across the world brought a kotatsu to their homes, we could find a way to stop wars. But that, of course, is just my opinion. | しょうじき、 私にとっては、世界の 全ての 人が 家に こたつをおけば、せんそうを なくす ことが できると 思います。でも それは、私の 意見だけです。 |
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Top 3 Tips From 2025 Japanese Speech Contest Winners
- Be brave and take the first step!
- Be consistent in your studies, one step at a time.
- Be part of a community of fellow language learners and mentors.
You can accomplish all that through joining FAST OFFER International’s free Japanese classes!
So many of our success stories, of talents from all over the world finding their dream job in Japan, began their journey through our free Japanese classes. Through the classes’ holistic approach, through lectures, workshops, and Japanese speech contests such as this, the classes not only equip students with the Japanese language skill needed to secure a future in Japan, they also help built their confidence to take up new challenges!
Although this is just the beginning, Kinjal and Shriram’s future is looking bright! If you want to follow in their footsteps and start learning Japanese for amazing career prospects, check out FAST OFFER International’s Free Japanese Classes. If you want to know more about your path to Japan, read more about us in our Frequently Asked Questions, or find an activity that suits you in our Events page.
