#5 - IELTS Speaking test in India - March 2016

Test # 5

- What is your full name?

I am (name_father's name_surname)

- Can I see your ID?

Yes sure!

- Where are you from?

I'm from Ahmedabad that is the biggest city in Gujarat.

- Do you work or study?

I work as a relationship manager at the regional corporate office of a telecom giant in my country.

- How different is your work today from the past?

Since I started working, at 18, I've grown quite a lot in terms of knowledge and responsibilities. So today at 26, I have more work, but I also have more expertise on how to do it efficiently.

- When are you happy at work?

I am happy most of the days when there is no pressure of targets. When the month has been economically good for the company, work is also very easy going, so I feel happy then.

- Tell me about your city.

My city was known as the textile hub of India in the 19th century. However many other industries have now flourished instead and Ahmedabad has been declared a mega city, economically and socially. We have a host of entertainment options and the lifestyle here is easy going and enjoyable.

- Are there taxi and bus services in your area?

Yes there are. In fact my area is one of the lively ones in Ahmedabad so a lot of transportation options are available from my area to any part of the city.

- Why do you think people read magazines?

People read magazines to know about the things they are interested in, like Bollywood, automobiles, health, beauty, fashion and so on. Magazines present all this content very attractively so this makes it fun to read magazines.

Cue Card

Talk about an article you have read recently in a magazine or a newspaper. Please say

- When and where did you read it?

- What was it about?

- How did you feel after reading it?

I read this article about a Bollywood celebrity couple about to be divorced in a magazine called Filmfare. It is a very popular magazine about the film industry of my country. I read it when I was waiting at a hair salon for my haircut. The headline of the article attracted me in the first glance as the couple mentioned in that had one of the most iconic love stories. The article talked in detail about the history of the couple and the happy days, and then went on to reveal that their relationship was on the rocks since quite sometime. Apparently, it is being assumed that the husband cheated on the wife with some other Bollywood actress and this resulted in the wife moving out to a separate apartment with their kids. Now they have filed for a divorce and would be separated soon. I felt really bad after reading this. Any news of any failed relationship, be it of the people I personally know, or any celebs that I follow, always tend to upset me, and I felt the same this time too. This particular couple had been married for 22 years and it is unimaginable for me that such a long marriage life can be broken too. This kind of news always shake your beliefs in the sacred institution of marriage.

Discussion

- How often do you read this type of articles?

Very often. I have subscribed for the e-copy of this Filmfare magazine so I read such gossip articles on a weekly basis.

- Would you suggest this article to your friends?

I don't know. Maybe I wouldn't, as I feel as it upset me, it might upset my friends too whom I'd recommend it to.

- Tell me about magazines available in your country.

There's Femina and Vogue for fashion and health, Autocar for all things related to cars, Stardust and Filmfare for Bollywood news, Insight for news related to consumer right and redressals, and Reader's Digest for self-improvement. There are many other too but I don't remember all their names. 

- Does reading magazines have a negative or a positive impact on teenagers?

It has both. For example from a fashion magazine, teens can know about the latest dressing trends going on, but it has also been observed that they get obsessed with such materialistic things and move more towards being vanity, and forget what's really important. Another example can be from a Bollywood magazine, they may know about the lifestyles of their favourite movie stars but trying to follow the same routine in their own life might not be such a good idea.

- Do you remember news seen on TV or in the newspaper?

Yes I do. I as in watch the headlines only so I'm able to remember those.

- Why do people still listen to news on the radio?

Radio channels broadcast news with an immediate effect, like traffic or weather conditions in the city, and information about upcoming events, so people like to listen to the news on the radio for these kinds of things.