The Asian Festival of Children's Content in Singapore was the first literary festival I attended. Here's what I did there.The first session, Cracking the Golden Egg at Literary Festivals, was conducted by Felicia Low-Jiminez and Maria Alessandrino. It was a useful panel discussion, even though it focused more on how to deal with being invited to speak at literary festivals than on 'cracking the golden egg' when you're just another attendee, which is what most of us were. The fine line between networking and pestering people to keep in touch or read your work remains unknown terrain for me!The Irresistible Fantastical Supernatural: Writing a World that Beckons conducted by Cynthia Leitich Smith was simply lovely! She made us write a bit, helping us create a creature that rings true. She spoke of the way in which she writes, the letters she receives ... all with a delicious … [Read more...]
Workshop at Mane’s International School, Ratnagiri
People on the road selling karvand, mangoes and jackfruit. The lilting language that makes me listen to the tune rather than the meaning. The dark sand and the crashing waves. Joy!And Mane's International School was beautiful. It's a small school as of now, just a baby. There are mango trees everywhere, and the principal spoke of how the children run round and round the trees as they play. Apparently, the rains night before last made the mangoes come crashing down, but until then, the boughs were heavy with fruit!On the way to Ratnagiri, we stopped to buy karvand, offered to us in cups made of velvety leaves. (What a city person I am! I don't know what leaves they were ...) What was most charming was that each cup of fruit cost ten rupees. Some of the leaves were small, with the cups holding barely a dozen berries. Some were huge, with over thirty! But the rate was the … [Read more...]
Back from AFCC 2016
So much excitement, so much fun!I attended the Asian Festival of Children's Content at Singapore for the first time, and the opening ceremony was the grand event at which the winner of the Scholastic Asian Book Award 2016 was announced. My unpublished work, Dragonflies, Jigsaws and a Rainbow, was one of the five shortlisted entries, and it was a wonderful feeling being there, waiting, anticipating ...The shortlisted entries were: Chasing Freedom by Tina Cho (South Korea) Codex: The Lost Treasure of the Indus by Aditi Krishnakumar (India) Dragonflies, Jigsaws and a Rainbow by Varsha Seshan (India) Island Girl by Ho Lee Ling, Stephanie (Singapore) The Budding Traveller by Golda Mowe (Malaysia)Aditi Krishnakumar won the grand prize of 10,000 SGD and a publishing contract with Scholastic Asia. Tina Cho was the first runner-up, and Ho Lee Ling, Stephanie was the … [Read more...]
Storytelling Workshop at Palm Groves
A group of parents got together and invited me to conduct a weeklong storytelling workshop at a housing society. Storytelling has never been more fun! Working with my own stories is a lovely experience in itself, and when the story comes with its own kit ... The enjoyment reaches new levels!Here's a group of children putting together the jigsaw puzzle of Bholu at the Level Crossing ...It was such fun telling this story, with the children making the same sounds that Chitra makes in the book, imitating the train - Poooonnnn! Chug-chug-chug-chug, chug-chug-chug-chug. One observant child commented that the red Swift in the picture had to be an old one because there was no reversing camera!And here's another picture of all the children busily colouring the sketches that are part of the third kit, the one for Bholu at the School Excursion ...This one was fun because we … [Read more...]
Record Breakers at Cathedral Vidya School
Another set of Reading Challenge workshops came to an end yesterday. This time, the theme was 'Record Breakers', and the school that took it on was Cathedral Vidya School, Lonavala. Working with fifteen bright children from classes five to eight filled me with joy!Lipograms and pangrams brought much hilarity ... The activity started in all seriousness and then went crazy as the children let their imaginations go wild.Every one of the participants was enthusiastic - all of them say they enjoyed the challenge!And, of course, team-building is part of the joy of workshops. How hard they try to finish their activity first!Another workshop is just around the corner, this time at the British Library, Pune. Click here for details. … [Read more...]
Travel the World: A Journey through Stories
I'm conducting a storytelling workshop this weekend at the British Library, Pune.OverviewEvery culture creates its own stories: to entertain young children, to teach them, and to attempt to explain the world. Through interactive storytelling, this workshop will give young children a glimpse of different cultures, allowing them to taste a little of the world!Day OneIt’s summertime, the best time to explore stories about summer and sunshine! Let’s travel to various countries, look at their costumes, and then imagine their stories. Children will enact the story with the storyteller, bringing alive the customs and traditions of each country we visit.Day TwoWhat comes after the summer? The rains in some parts of the world; autumn in others! Let's recall stories of summertime and then look at how seasons change. Finally, the children will be given pictures to … [Read more...]
Reading and Writing Workshops at SGI, Kolhapur!
I spent three days at Sanjay Ghodawat International School, Kolhapur, and conducted a series of reading and writing workshops with 204 children as part of the British Library's Reading Challenge programme. We worked on myths from around the world, read aloud Fragoline and the Midnight Dream and George and the Dragon, played with idioms, wrote stories ... What fun it was! … [Read more...]
Performing on 8 May!
I’ve lost count of the number of times people have asked me when we’re performing in Pune. Finally, here we go!The senior students of the Academy of Indian Dances bring to you a traditional Bharatanatyam programme, featuring a range of pieces that explore nritta, nritya and natya. Beginning with an invocatory dance, we move on to a pure nritta composition, raagamaalikai jatiswaram.The longest and most elaborate piece compares the lives of Rama and Krishna, exploring the abhinaya aspect of Bharatanatyam to the fullest. The devotee wonders which of the two gods to worship. Krishna was born in a dark prison in the middle of the night; Rama was born in the grandeur of a palace, amidst great joy! As a child, Krishna gave moksha to two gandharvas. The pure-hearted Rama granted salvation to Ahalya. Krishna snatched Rukmini away from her brother and married her; Rama broke Shiva's … [Read more...]
More First Prints!
I wrote not so long ago about the first prints of The Duronto Adventure and Bholu at the Level Crossing. The next two books for young readers are here!A little about these two books ...Kevin has lost his lucky coin! Bholu volunteers to help him look for it, and Deven, Priya, Rohit and Ruth come along. Would you like to explore the train with them?Forty-two children go on a school excursion to the railway station. What happens when one child gets lost? … [Read more...]
Shortlisted for the Scholastic Asian Book Award!
My work, Dragonflies, Jigsaws and a Rainbow, has been shortlisted for the Scholastic Asian Book Award!The award winner will be revealed at the opening ceremony of the Asian Festival of Children's Content (AFCC) in May this year.The objectives of the award are:To recognise excellence in fiction in Asian stories for children To showcase the diversity of literary talent within Asian To encourage and inspire more Asian-themed books and storiesThe five titles were elected by a panel of experts in the field of children’s books. These works are in the running for the grand prize of $10,000 SGD, and the winning manuscript may be published by Scholastic Asia. Between 2011 and 2014, the world's largest children books publishing and distribution company had published six SABA winners’ and finalists’ works, with another three to be launched at the AFCC 2016. … [Read more...]