The planet of Apps

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Brothers Shravan 12, and Sanjay, 10 are the country’s youngest mobile application developers

For Chennai’s Sanjay and Shravan Kumaran, India’s youngest mobile application developers, smartphones and tablets are the most intimate companions.

Aged only 12 and 10 respectively, Shravan is the co-founder and President of Go Dimensions while his brother Sanjay is co-founder and CEO. The tech-savvy generation of today can now utilise three of their apps available for download on iPads and iPhones. Attracting the maximum response from the users, the first app is a game called ‘Catch Me Cop’ that involves multiple levels with varying speeds. To hone your child’s creativity, there are apps for learning alphabets and colours in an easier and more interesting way. There is also a prayer app for those on the move.
“The downloads have already crossed the 10,000-mark with users from across 30 countries,” says proud father Kumaran who is an IT expert. The apps are free for download, says Shravan. The company will make money on advertisements.
Talking about their tale, a thrilled Sanjay says, “When Shravan was in class III, our dad gifted us a computer, which intrigued us. Gradually, we started learning PPT (PowerPoint presentations), animation basics and began photo-shopping our pictures. Our father started training us in QBasic four years ago and that’s where our love for programming started.”
What is considered difficult to learn by most adults — programming languages like QBasic, Java basics, XML and Objective C — has been mastered by Shravan and Sanjay. Speaking of how their popularity is crossing national borders, Kumaran says, “Many foreign companies from China, the US and India have already approached us.”
The budding techies are well equipped with an iPad, iPhone, Mac book Pro, IBM Thinkpad, and a Galaxy Tab. As for future apps in the works, they would like to make lifestyle applications that would help senior citizens and the visually challenged. Another app in the making is the “environment app that will provide data about pollution levels at a particular place.” The boys are also dreaming of designing the world’s lightest tablet. Shop-talk aside, the boys have also performed in a live music show and like to tap their feet to the beats of Michael Jackson’s Thriller. Talking about the relationship they share, they both admit that, “we are very close to each other and draw inspiration from one another. We seldom fight.”
Drawing inspiration from biz wiz Bill Gates and Apple wizard Steve Jobs, the brothers have decided to donate a portion (15 per cent) of their profits to charity. How do they manage their time? The boys say, “We spend about one hour a day learning programming; an hour playing outdoor games like badminton, skating, or cricket; and an hour devoted to studies.”
A typical day such as this is then wrapped up by sitting together at night with their parents to talk about the latest goings-on in their personal and professional lives.