What's better than a creative writing workshop with enthusiastic children?Two creative writing workshops with enthusiastic children!On Saturday, I did a workshop at Meridian Kids Club for the first time. New place, new children - it's always fun! An activity I love is creating monsters together, and this time was no different.We played a game during which the children came up with a huge greenish monster with twenty heads, a hundred eyes, one tooth, no noses and just one foot. The interesting thing about this monster, though, was that he was ugly and good. He would clean up the world. Good and ugly was a wonderful combination, and I'm glad it came up. (I've written earlier about attempting to investigate why all the monsters children create at my workshops are black and fairies are blond.)I asked the children to create the monster's enemy too, for conflict is central to a … [Read more...]
Vidya Valley Literature Festival
If you think children don't find reading interesting anymore, think again. At Vidya Valley School's Literature Festival, it was absolutely delightful to see children running around, roaring with excitement, thrilled to bits with the very idea of a lit fest! This was my second year at the festival, and it was even better than the first.I was asked to talk about my railway adventures to class V, and the experience was invigorating. I was astounded by the number of children who knew how bullet trains run. I didn't know a thing until I began this project! "Magnets," many said, quite coolly. Still others said, even more comfortably, "Mag-lev - magnetic levitation."When I read out an excerpt from The Toy Train, I realised that bullet trains, being new and exciting aren't the only things that are familiar to the children. They knew about the steam engine and the toy trains in … [Read more...]
The author in you
The Story Station turns two!The Story Station is a reading centre in Aundh, Pune, where adults and children can discover the love of books. A space that's always bursting with energy, it hosts all kinds of activities, revolving around reading, storytelling and creative writing.I'm delighted to be part of their birthday week fest. 'The author in you' is a creative writing workshop that I will be conducting this Sunday for children over the age of eight. See you there! … [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...]
Kayani Bakery
If you have not been to Kayani Bakery on a Saturday afternoon, you cannot have any idea what it's like. I cannot describe the way people crowd around the counter that they can reach, and around the counters that they cannot. I cannot describe how the red-faced men behind the counter serve customer after customer, cheerfully ignoring other customers who insist on shouting out their orders. Some of the men behind the counter smile and converse. Others give you withering looks. Still others lecture you on how you should wait for your turn. It's all part of the experience.Today, I was in Kayani Bakery, peacefully waiting, and amusing myself by watching how people cope with the crowd."Yes, ma'am?" came a cheerful voice.I placed my (rather large) order. As he put my order together, the gentleman explained to me the difference between plain cake and mawa cake. "You'll need two bags for … [Read more...]
Gnomeo and Juliet at Artsphere, Pune
The British Council Library and Artsphere Pune hosted a screening of the movie "Gnomeo and Juliet", and I was invited to talk about the movie, about Romeo and Juliet, and about Shakespeare. I was tremendously excited - I love working with the British Council; I was going to work in a new venue with a new audience; I was going to work with Shakespeare!I began my preparation by re-reading Romeo and Juliet. I have an edition of the complete works of William Shakespeare that used to belong to my grandfather. Within, I found this ...... and I read Romeo and Juliet with a smile.The movie was fun, but after an 81-minute long screening, the children were not really in the mood for anything else. Yet, when we began to talk about Shakespeare, many slowly grew excited. We spoke about the challenges players faced in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and the fact that … [Read more...]