Okay, so this blog post cheats a little because even though it is about letters I've received, I'm also going to write about ones I just received - as photographs. They're letters that I sent over 18 years ago. In my previous post, I wrote about the only crossed letter I ever wrote. I just saw a picture of the crossed letter and I realised I got it all wrong. So much for that. A crossed letter doesn't have upside-down writing; it has writing at 90º to the original text--that's what makes it crossed. Oh, well here's my only attempt at a crossed letter, influenced by all the Georgette Heyers I read.I didn't read the whole thing, but I was amused by the fact that the parts I liked most in her books were the arguments! And also, now, I wonder how it was to read her books for the first time. That does feel very long ago.Just like my father, I enjoyed sending out fun newspaper … [Read more...]
Letters I Receive – V
I've written about both Sreeja and her grandparents before. When Sreeja was studying at IIT-Kharagpur, she invited Veda and me to come for Diwali and see the magnificent illumination and rangoli on campus. All the dates went awry and we finally reached Kharagpur the day after the illumination. Oh, well, we saw what was left of it all. And Kolkata was special.We stayed with Sreeja's grandparents in Calcutta. They're exceptionally warm people, who, like so many other Indian grandparents, showed all their love for us through food. This was in 2005. When we got back home, in the way I try to do, I wrote them a letter, thanking them for everything. And the wonderful thing? They wrote back! For once, here's a picture of the whole letter.Sreeja was also one of my most regular correspondents. We wrote regularly to each other, pages and pages. At a time when I was devouring Georgette … [Read more...]
Letters I Receive – IV
Recently (well, not recently really, but not long before the lockdown began), I did a letter-writing activity at a couple of workshops. I've always loved receiving letters. A letter in the mailbox with YOUR NAME on it? Ooh, the joy!I wanted children to experience that too, and what better way than through a workshop? But the world has changed. I learned a lot through my letter-writing activity - including the fact that some children have been taught not to tell other people their address - ever!I understand that, don't get me wrong, but I couldn't help thinking about the Pen Pals page in one of my favourite children's magazines, Sanctuary Cub. I have no idea if that page still exists, but the pen friends I made as a child were thanks to the magazine - which published my full name and address. I didn't think it at all dangerous then. Now, I wonder.Pen friends are fun, so much … [Read more...]
Letters I Receive – III
Have you ever had chicken pox? But more importantly, did you have a special friend to write letters to when you were quarantined?My sister Nisha missed her sixth standard final exams because she had chicken pox. Right through those weeks, she was extra careful, taking precautions rather similar to the ones we're taking right now in times of Corona, though sanitiser was unheard of then. She didn't touch things I would touch; she sat in one sofa; our beds were socially distant (of course, we didn't think of it like that). After my exams, after Nisha recovered, I got chicken pox too. I guess it was bound to happen. But during the weeks that I was at home, she would take letters from me to my bestest best friend every day. I had a little black book in which I would write my letter. My bestest friend would write in the same book and bring it back. And privacy was a core value at home, so … [Read more...]
Letters I Receive – II
Once upon a time, we had a dial-up connection. I don't know if younger readers of my blog even know what that is. Email took ages to load. You could read a book while you waited for the connection to be established and then ... Never mind.For some reason, I had a usa (dot) net email id. They later made it a paid service, so I just stopped using that email address. I began to use rediffmail instead. It was modern and quite cool, but internet was still expensive, and I didn't yet know how to type. My sister Nisha and I were (and are) so close that we had hours of conversation that we needed to catch up on when we were apart. How could emails do?Plus, as dancers, we needed more. Sending videos was impossible. I mean, who had digital cameras? And how could the internet be used to send videos? That was absurd.So, the first time Nisha went to France and wanted to perform, I wrote … [Read more...]
Letters I Receive – I
Have you ever wondered who uses the stationery in a hotel room? I mean, who needs an envelope and letter-writing paper and all of that when you spend one night in a hotel?I raise my hand. It's me. And I take after my father. During the lockdown, I plan to share a story about a letter, or just a picture of a letter each day. Here's one.This one is from my father. I've always loved receiving letters from him! Each year, we would go to my grandparents' place in Bangalore for the summer, and each year, he would write me at least one letter before he joined us there. This one is from much later in my life - when I was doing my post-graduation at Jadavpur University, Kolkata.In this letter, my father addresses me as he often does Baccha mine. Isn't there something deliciously warm about it? He wrote to me from Chennai and my favourite part is the end, where he refuses to put … [Read more...]
Leap Day
I've always been fascinated by leap years. Who hasn't? Magically, out of nothingness, a day appears every four years. Where does it hide, squished between the 28th of February (a special month anyway) and the 1st of March? What does it do when it is hiding?Equally, I've been torn by envy of and pity for people born on the 29th of February. The uniqueness of the day surely makes you a special person. But poor you! How does it feel to have a real birthday only once in four years?I was so fascinated by the idea that in the very first book I wrote (which was, thankfully, never published), I created a special day - the 31st of November to echo the magic of a day that springs into being out of nothingness. It was not enough, though, to satisfy my love for this day.And so, in Sisters at New Dawn, I built an event around it. A proper event for leap day. At New Dawn … [Read more...]
Reading, Writing, Dancing
Two weeks ago, I asked the children at my Writers' Club whether they would like to make readers laugh or cry. Three girls said they wanted to make readers laugh. 12 said they wanted to make readers cry. When a few said they would like to do both, those who had already raised their hands dithered.Finally, though, most agreed that making readers cry was more important. This was both surprising and not.Funny books that sparkle with humour are wonderful. Yet, I do know that the books that stay with me are books that make me cry. The best ones do both. I then asked the children what makes them cry in books.These were difficult conversations, by the way, and I was warmed by how much the girls opened up. A 12-year-old is not always comfortable talking about crying in front of a 9-year-old. The fact that they did - and passionately - was lovely.They spoke of happy moments … [Read more...]
I used to think
I used to think That if I held my breath, I could make friends with Anne Shirley, George, Sara Crewe, And Dorothy.I used to think That if I oiled my doll’s hair And shampooed it Maybe trimmed it now and then; If I took care of it, It would grow.I used to think That if I just knew how, I could transport myself To the Lake of Shining Waters Or Kirrin Island Or even Norway, which was as made up as the rest.I used to think That if I caught the mirror unawares, I would find it doing something else Its own thing Without me in it.I used to think That if I believed hard enough The Tooth Fairy would be real. As real as Matilda.I used to think That if I felt enough Or thought enough Or was enough, I would be in a book With real adventures And characters who loved deeply and spoke so beautifully.I used to think That hiding in my dark room, Was a … [Read more...]
Changes
I've been away from my blog for three weeks! Now, nothing seems Momentous enough to resume my regular writing. So, finally, I'm putting lots of things together just to set the writing rolling once more.1) I got married.2) I had another birthday and became one year older.3) I discovered that Red Turtle (an imprint of Rupa) has a book called Great Books for Children: A Guide by Preeti Singh, which mentions The Story-Catcher as part of its list.4) I'm beginning a new venture - workshops in schools. Starting this Monday, I will be conducting reading workshops at VP's Vinodkumar Gujar Bal Vikas Mandir, Baramati.I'm back to my blog! … [Read more...]