The most popular Artificial Intelligence device people use nowadays is probably the Amazon Alexa device. So many people I know have recently bought one, including my own family. Alexa is a rather helpful device to have at home, and it has made some things quite easyOur Alexa device is connected to the television, so whenever we want to switch it on, or change the channel, or adjust the sound volume, we just have to ask Alexa to do it. We also use Alexa to search for information on the internet, to make simple calculations, or to set reminders. However, I think my favourite function of Alexa is playing music – whenever I feel like listening to a song, I just need to say “Alexa, play so-and-so”, and the device begins to play it in mere seconds! To me, Alexa is a symbol of the future. Soon, Artificial Intelligence is going to appear in so many more forms, from cars to even houses themselves. I think the Alexa device is giving our generation good practice for whatever comes next! .

A female leader I would love to meet is Jacinda Ardern, the Prime Minister of New Zealand. She is a person whom I admire greatly, and I think she is a wonderful role model for girls and women around the world. I admire her goal to be a compassionate leader. I was very impressed by the way she handled the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as many other issues facing New Zealand, from terrorism to the environmental crisis. When she won her second term of office, I was so excited! And then when I found out how diverse her cabinet is, my admiration for her grew. If I were to meet her, I would love to ask her questions about her approach to work and life, and what it means to be a compassionate leader. I’m not interested in politics myself; rather I want to launch my own business one day – but I think that I could learn a lot from her about leadership skills. In my opinion, she is an ideal leader – not only is she great at leading her own country, but she’s leading people around the world to become better and kinder.

IA few weeks ago, my friends and I embarked on a road trip to celebrate the end of our exams. This was the first long car journey that we’d ever taken together, and it was a memorable experience. We set out early in the morning when it was still quite dark and cold. There weren’t a lot of cars on the road, and it was lovely to have the streets all to ourselves for a change! We made it on to the highway quite quickly too. As we headed north, the sun began to rise, casting golden light on the road and the trees. As we drove along, we passed fields and a couple of small rivulets. Soon after dawn, we began to see farmers coming out of their homes with their cattle. The scenery felt like something you’d find in a fairy tale. We kept driving, stopping whenever we spotted something interesting. We finally took a long break near a beautiful lake, to eat the snacks we’d carried. We spent a few hours at that spot, before deciding to head back to the city. The journey was tiring but worth it!

I think some of the people whose jobs are essential to society, but who are often overlooked or treated badly, are the sanitation workers. There is one particular person who cleans up the street right outside my house, whom I would like to talk about. Her name is Savita, and she’s probably in her late sixties. I run into her a few times on my way to work, when I have an early shift. She always greets me with a bright smile. The work she does is rather strenuous, especially for an older person, but she seems quite fit and strong. People have a tendency to look down on sanitation workers, thinking that they are uneducated. However, their role is so important to the functioning of society. They’re the ones who keep our city clean. Without Reema, and hundreds of other people in similar jobs, our lives would be messy and unhealthy. I believe that sanitation workers like Reena must be treated with dignity. Furthermore, the work that they do must be recognized as essential to society. I hope that by showing Reena my respect and appreciation, I’m playing a small part in this.

When I was a small child, I was very curious about all things in nature. I think I was about 4 or 5 years old, when I became rather fascinated by the sky. My parents had taken my brother and I on a trip to Mahabaleshwar, a hill-station close to Mumbai. It’s the first family vacation I actually remember quite well. During the trip, we climbed up a tall hill, to check out a popular viewpoint. It was a particularly clear and bright day. When we got to the top of the hill, the sky was a brilliant blue with plenty of cotton-like clouds scattered across it. For some reason, I became mesmerised by what I saw. I bombarded my father with questions about the sky that day, and for a few days after. I asked him why the sky is blue, what are clouds made of, why does the sky turn black at night, and many other childish questions. I’m sure he must have been quite exasperated by me! I no longer have so many questions of course, but I still admire the sky from time to time, especially on a bright day like that one in Mahabaleshwar.

Everyone in my family has one thing in common – we all love watching movies. One of our favourite leisure activities that we can all enjoy equally is a movie night. We usually watch movies at home on Netflix, where we get a wide range of options. We actually take our movie nights rather seriously. We darken the room, make a lot of popcorn, and everyone has to keep their phones off, much like an actual movie theatre! We all don’t enjoy the exact same genres of course, so we try to compromise to make everyone happy with the movie choices. Comedies, especially family comedies, are one genre we all enjoy equally. Besides that, we sometimes watch animated movies or biopics about famous people. We mainly watch Hindi movies, though we enjoy English movies as well. The last movie we watched together was ‘English Vinglish’. It’s a Hindi movie that came out a few years ago, but all of us hadn’t watched it before. We thoroughly enjoyed that movie. We spent the whole evening laughing, which is our favourite kind of movie night!

A few months ago, my friend and I wanted to take a short break from work. We also wanted to do something a bit unusual, for a change. Through our research, we found something quite interesting. Just a few kilometres outside the city, in a forested area, there was a holiday cabin. What made it unique was that it was an old shipping container that had been transformed into a cabin! It was exactly the kind of thing we were looking for, and we booked it immediately. We drove out to the forest, and met our host. The cabin was so interesting. It was so tiny, yet everything from a bed to a kitchen to a full-fledged bathroom had been fitted inside the small space. Strangely, we didn’t even feel a little claustrophobic or cooped up. The cabin’s location was perfect too. Far from the city lights, we were able to see a starry night sky, and there was a lovely little pond nearby. We stayed for just 2 days in this unusual place, and thoroughly enjoyed our time there.

In my home, there’s a picture of my great-grandparents on their wedding day. It’s the only picture we have of them, my father’s parents. I think this picture was taken in the 1930s or so, and of course, photography was very rare in those days. Most people don’t have any photos from that era. It’s quite an old, faded picture, though our family has been taking great care of it for a long time. It is encased in a simple black frame and displayed on a table in our living room. In it, my great-grandfather is dressed in traditional garments, and my great-grandmother is wearing a sari with intricate embroidery. Neither of them is smiling in the picture, but are standing together rather formally. Their wedding day was only the second time they met, and they seem to be rather shy of each other, even in the picture! They had a long, loving marriage of over 50 years, and had five children. So many years later, this photograph is treasured by us all. It’s as though the photograph is a reminder of the history of our family.

A few years ago, my family and I were travelling to our native village, when our car broke down on the highway. We’d been travelling throughout the night, and dawn had just broken. I think we were still a couple of hours away from our destination. It was quite chilly, and none of us were able to make calls on our phones. Luckily, about 15 minutes later, a small truck came down the road. The driver saw us waving, and stopped. My father told him about our predicament. He informed us that there was a small mechanic’s shop a few kilometers ahead. He graciously offered to take us all there, and we accepted gratefully. We sat in the back of the truck. My brother and I thought it was quite an adventure. We reached the mechanic’s shop a few minutes later. My mother, brother, and I sat in a little tea shop nearby, while my father went with the mechanic to our car. We sat together, enjoying a hot cup of tea on that chilly morning until my father got back in the car.

When I had just started my job at a software company, I received a great piece of advice from my team leader. It was my first job after graduation, and I was struggling to get used to the corporate schedule. I wasn’t able to finish my work in a timely manner and ended up staying late often. After the first two weeks, my team leader asked how things were going. I told him that I liked the job, but that I was having trouble managing my time. He suggested that I start making a daily and weekly schedule for myself, to keep track of all my tasks. He told me to give a certain amount of time to each task, based on how difficult or important they were, as well as to organize my tasks in order of their importance. That way, I wouldn’t waste time on unimportant things and spend so much time stuck in the office. I started following his advice, and in a few days, I was doing much better. It was some of the best advice I’ve ever received.

On my first day of college, I sat next to a boy from Manipur. He introduced himself as Rishi. He seemed to be a quiet, studious person. He listened to the teacher with great concentration and took down notes. He didn’t say anything to me, and I assumed that he was shy. During the break, I got up to leave and didn’t bother inviting him to join me, as I thought he wouldn’t want to. But he asked me if I was free, and would like to join him. I was rather surprised, but I agreed. He didn’t say much, though he did tell me we were going to a nearby café. When we got there, as I looked for a table, he told me he would catch up with me later, and walked to the front where there were some guys sitting with musical instruments. Rishi said hi to them, and then turned towards us and introduced himself. To my amazement, he then began to sing in a deep, melodious voice. He and I ended up becoming very good friends after that day.

I have a friend who speaks French fluently. She is from Pondicherry in Tamil Nadu which used to be a French colony. There are still a few French people living there, and the French language is taught in schools. When I was in college, we had to study a foreign language for a year, and I chose French. That’s how I met my friend. On the first day, she stood up and introduced herself in French. Even though I couldn’t understand a word, it sounded like she knew French very well. The teacher was impressed and told the rest of us to ask her for help if we needed it. She and I ended up as partners for our first assignment, where we had to make a poster about a place in France. She made sure that I understood what we were doing, instead of just doing it all herself, and we got the highest marks in class. Since then, she helped me with my French studies, and I did well in the exam. She is the reason I still remember some French even now. Watch this section as more topics will be added in the coming weeks……. Remember to use good pronunciation and practice repeatedly with good grammar and vocabulary. Speaking requires regular practice and must be done keeping the timing in mind. Hope you found this information on IELTS Speaking Cue Card Topics for 2021 helpful? You can also refer to more Cue Card Topics from 2020 for practice. To know more about it join IELTS Online Training and IELTS Classroom Training. Reach out to us at info@hurrayedutech.com or call us at 9900426501. Hurray offers Study Abroad consultation, IELTS/PTE/OET, and Spoken English programs. Visit our website https://www.hurrayedutech.com/ for more information.