Anurima Chanda is a PhD research scholar working on Indian English Children's Literature from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU). Recently, one of her papers on Nonsense Superheroes was  chosen as course curriculum at the Berklee College of Music. She loves translating to and from Bengali, her native language. She loves writing and illustrating for children.   

I am doing my PhD from the Centre for English Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University. I am at the last stage as I submit in July this year. My topic (and this you would be glad to know) is on Twenty First Century Indian English Children's Literature and how it has been challenging previously held taboos within this area. So I look at texts that are not afraid to talk about caste, class, crime, violence, death, disease, disability, broken families, alternate sexualities, so on and so forth. The Pratham Books title ‘Chuskit Goes to School’ is one of the many stories that I am looking at - and I should inform you that I absolutely loved the story. I remember that I was looking for the English version of the story at the Delhi Book Fair this year, but they had already been sold out. That is when I started searching for it online and was glad to see that it was made freely available online on StoryWeaver.

I discovered StoryWeaver when the Pratham Books page on Facebook advertised about the Retell, Remix and Rejoice Contest 2017. When I went through the site, I realised how easy it was to upload one’s stories through the platform. That is what got me so excited! But I saved all my excitement for later, as at that moment my prime target was to send a story for the contest. I got to know really late as it was already 27th or 28th of April and the last date for submission was 30th. I knew I had a story but I did not have enough time to weave it properly. When I saw the subheadings under which I could write, I knew I wanted to write about "Body Parts" but with a slight twist. I wanted to tie it up with disability, so that we bring a break in the way body parts are taught at schools. Children are made aware that there are people for whom eyes and ears function differently. The motive behind it was not just spreading awareness but also to find a way against bullying that disabled children face at school.

StoryWeaver has given me that confidence to tell my story, even if it is not polished. Plus, it is an added advantage, that you guys are so open to new ideas. Unlike most other publishing houses, who still have concerns about the suitability of sharing stories around certain topics with young children, Pratham Books has always been a forerunner in breaking that pattern and showing the way ahead. So thank you, thank you for changing the scene of children's writing in India and for giving us - people who are so passionate about this field, an opportunity to experiment.   

By that time the story bug had hit me hard. I started with simple translations. Then I thought of writing my own story, and the easiest was telling my own story - yes, Mohar is my nickname and that story had really happened. I wrote in Bengali, because although I am an English student, I still 'think' my stories in Bengali - even today. About the illustrations, one of the biggest grouse against Indian children's literature has been that it uses western pattern of illustrations. Even though there have been experiments with indigenous art-forms, it has shot up the prices of the books, making it out of reach for majority of the children in India. So, I knew that whenever I tell my own story, I will experiment with indigenous art-form. That was the reason that I used the Warli art-form for the book. And, in the future too, I intend on using similar art-forms - be it Poto-chitro, Madhubani, Gond or the others.

 

You can read Mohar in English, here.

There were so many people who complimented me on Mohar, that now I know that I am doing something right. I always knew that in the future I wanted to write for children. But this one, just made me more confident. Now I know for certain that I can do it. And thanks to you guys for making it so simple! So, my major aim is to get through complex ideas to children in the most easy way possible. To tell stories about children who do not fit into the mainstream idea of childhood in India. Then, to have my friends translate these stories into as many languages as possible to spread them far and wide. And yes, to experiment with folk art. I also want to help open libraries for children in the country - starting with my hometown Siliguri. At present I do not have the money, but once I submit my PhD and have a job, I would love to initiate that project. It is all a dream!

 

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About the ‘Goshticha Shaniwar’ Reading Programme

2020 was a year like no other. All over the world, the shadow of COVID-19 loomed large. Schools and students had to find and adapt to new channels and ways of learning from home. In Maharashtra, India, 53 lakh students of government schools and anganwadis were affected, and had to cope with a challenging learning environment and the stresses of COVID-19.

Pratham Books’ StoryWeaver, the State Council of Educational Research & Training, Maharashtra (SCERT), Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS), and UNICEF joined hands to co-create the ‘Goshticha Shaniwar’ (Saturday of Stories) Reading Programme for the children of Maharashtra, to encourage learning through stories, while addressing children’s socio-emotional needs.

‘Goshticha Shaniwar’ was launched in October 2020, and for 5 months, provided free high-quality reading material every week to students from grades 1 to 8, across the state of Maharashtra. Every Saturday, one storybook in Marathi was shared for anganwadi children. A set of four age-appropriate storybooks in each of the three languages: Marathi, Urdu, and English, was shared with children in grades 1 to 8. These e-books were curated by the StoryWeaver team, and were then shared via WhatsApp with children - through Supervisors and Anganwadi Workers in the case of ICDS, and by District Coordinators (from DIETs), Block Resource Persons, Cluster Leaders, and teachers, in the case of school children. These digital storybooks were supported by posters, and interesting activities based on concepts from the stories, to encourage greater involvement.

Since the books were openly licensed, they were free to read, download, print, project, adapt and share. This allowed for projection in places that had TVs or screens, printouts to be distributed, and several grassroot level innovations like the Bicycle Library of Gadchiroli. To bridge the digital divide and reach those who did not have internet or smartphones, stories were also delivered through Pratham Books’ audio stories initiative: ‘Missed Call Dya, Ani Goshta Aika’ (‘Give a Missed call, Listen to a Story’).

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Programme Impact

5 months

36 districts of Maharashtra

1 lakh schools and anganwadis

2.6 lakh teachers, anganwadi supervisors and workers

25 lakh children

The ‘Goshticha Shaniwar’ Reading Programme has demonstrated beyond doubt the benefits of integrating joyful reading into the child’s daily routine. The implementation of this Programme has provided us with directions for newer, more innovative ways of reaching children even in the most remote areas. It has also highlighted the strengths of conceptualising, implementing, and monitoring a reading programme in close partnership with all its stakeholders.

Engaging, contextualised storybooks can play a great role in building foundational reading skills, and help children learn, grow and achieve their potential. The stakeholder network and open licensed content from platforms like StoryWeaver can help provide uninterrupted online and offline access to high-quality storybooks in multiple languages. If we are to achieve foundational literacy and numeracy for every Indian child studying in Grades 1 to 3 by 2025, we shall need to make reading a part of her timetable, every single day.

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World Storytelling Day 2021

StoryWeaver, SCERT, ICDS and UNICEF are marking World Storytelling Day 2021 with an online symposium to celebrate the success of the ‘Goshticha Shaniwar’ Reading Programme.

The symposium will feature a panel discussion on ‘Reading for Joy & Language Proficiency’ and remarks from leadership from SCERT, UNICEF, Pratham Books, award-winning author Mr. Rajiv Tambe, Mr. Mangesh Gondavale, CEO, Zilla Parishad (Aurangabad), Mr. Dhir Jhingran, Founder & Director, Language and Learning Foundation. The symposium will be addressed by Ms. Varsha Gaikwad, Minister, School Education & Sports (Maharashtra) and Ms. Vandana Krishna, IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, School Education (Maharashtra). The event will also include the unveiling of a book that captures the ‘Goshticha Shaniwar’ model, impact and sustainability, and caselets from the field.

Watch the symposium online on March 20, 2021 at 11 am: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=icvmbmPjbGI

 

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comments (2)

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Utthana Bharighat is an artist who likes to create narratives and has a deep interest in theatre, cinema and writing. He has translated books to Kannada for Pratham Books, adding translator to his accomplishments. 

Q:  What type of person do you think makes the best translator for children’s stories?

Most importantly, the person should love children. A good translator is someone who is ready to interact with children unconditionally, and thus he or she understands their lingo and temperament well.

Q: Do you have any advice for anyone interested in becoming a translator?

Do it only if you find it fun! Otherwise translation could be boring and mechanical which shows up in your work too.

Q: A book you'd like to recommend to other translators?

There is a Kannada language translation of the Japanese novel Thousand Cranes by Yasunari Kawabata, by the name Savira Pakshigalu. I would recommend people to read both these texts to see how beautiful a translation can be. The Kannada translation is as elegant as the original.

Q: What is your personal relationship to language and/or translation?

Translation at one level is like solving puzzles. But to solve this, one has to take help from wide range of knowledge systems, including literature, culture, sociology, human nature and more. Thus, translation becomes an extension of exploring my interest.

Q: When you’ve been given a story to translate, what’s your process, and how long does it generally take?

A: I  read the whole story, first. Then I think about the style in which this would sound good in Kannada. After that, I read every sentence and try to find words which suit the style. After finishing the whole story, I will read it again and make further changes. To do all this it would take 3 to 4 hours for me.



Q: What do stories in translation bring to young readers?

A: Some stories ignite children’s imagination. Some stories give them an access to a different world that they have never seen before. Along with learning new things children will learn new words and thus improve their language skills.

Q: You’ve translated stories for us. Which has been your favourite to work on?

A: I liked The Red Fairy and Stage Fright.

Q:. What is the hardest thing about translating from English into Kannada? How do you navigate words or phrases that are tricky to translate?

A:Whenever I encounter tricky phrases or sentences, I imagine myself explaining this to a child in Kannada. As I do it a few times, I will arrive at a solution. Sometime asking people around for suggestion also helps.  

Q:  How do you feel when your story reaches the child?

A: Of course, it is the most beautiful feeling. And I always hope that the child likes what he/she reads.

Q: As a Student of Performance arts, what do you think is the best approach to translate children's stories? And, do you think you have found a way in this regard?

A: I can’t say I have mastered it. But I am gaining skills as I do it more and more. I would say. Performance arts have taught me how to communicate in a simple and clear manner. I think these two qualities are important for translation too.

Q: How else do you think we can join hands to take more stories to more children in more languages?

A: I would like to see more of local stories. Though there is universality in the themes and interests, I feel that the children gain more if they are given the stories which have taken form in their own cultural space. I think there is more to gain if some decentralization happens in the creation of stories and illustrations, which are being featured here. Regardless of the competent translators, a Kannada story teller would reach a Kannada kid in a more effective way. It is as organic as it could get.

 

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