Inspired By The Infinite Wisdom Of Children

Paro Anand is a Sahitya Akademi Bal Sahitya Puraskar. She writes books for children, young adults and adults. Through her programme 'Literature in Action', she also works with children in schools & NGOs and holds a world record for helping above 3,000 children make the world’s longest newspaper. She has also been awarded for her contribution to children’s literature by The Russian Centre for Science and Culture. Her book on children and young adults caught in the midst of strife in Kashmir, 'No Guns at my Son’s Funeral', opened to rave reviews, was on the International Board on Books for Young People Honour List and has been translated into German and French. She has also authored 'Like Smoke', 'The Other', 'Nomad’s Land' and co-authored 'Two' with Orjan Persson.

Anand figured as one of the 25 ‘Most Influential Women’ in BW Education’s annual list, on the occasion of International Women’s Day, 8 March. In conversation with BW Education, Anand describes tradition of children's literature in India and also sheds light on the scenario of children’s writing in modern India. “There wasn't such recognition of childhood traditionally. Earlier, the stories were meant for the whole gathering, not just for children. I don't think there was specifically children's stories,” says Anand. The stories of Panchatantra, that are considered to be children’s literature today, were not benign, because these stories were not written for children. The same holds true for Ramayana and Mahabharata.

Journey as a children’s author

Describing her journey and the inspiration to write stories for children and young adults, Anand states, “I started as a drama teacher. When we were to put up plays or do improvisations, there were no contemporary stories for children in script form. Most stories were from the West and many of them for adults, like The Bishop's Candlesticks, The Monkey's Paw, The Importance of Being Earnest.”  

So, Anand started writing plays for children to perform and they were very successful. This encouraged her to publish these works. In her innocent naive way, she typewrote on manual typewriter and went around Ansari Road in New Delhi, approaching all the publishers, 'having done no homework'. Among her reminiscences of the early struggles is that of a darban showing her kindness and offering a cup of tea on a cold morning – the only person to show kindness early on at that stage of the career.  

It was extremely difficult getting plays published and everyone in the publishing circles told her that there is no market. “Although, how can there be no market for plays when every school for every occasion puts up a play and I was writing performance-ready plays,” she wonders.

Her plays had characters, suggested costumes, set, prop and would also help schools involve a large number of students in one production – which is a key priority for schools in cultural events. And they also had contemporary theme. Anand’s earliest work was eventually published much later, as the seventh book of her literary journey.  

Insights into children’s world

Commenting on the elements of a good story and the most significant thing she learned in penning books, Anand says, “One needs to be honest, to be totally raw and truthful even if that truth is going to hurt. Authenticity is very important. It is important to not treat children as 'phool jaise bachche’. They are not fools, yet we often underestimate them, talking down, giving easy solutions and giving happy endings. They know it is not like that. They know life more than we knew it as children because they have greater exposure through internet and social media.”

Having said that, Anand provides a ray of hope about finding a solution, knowing that it is a dark time for teenagers and they often feel helpless.  

Anand has also got a deep insight into children’s creative potential during the workshops that she does with children. She undertook a project of making the world's longest newspaper while heading the National Centre for Children's Literature. Describing the experience of working with children as part of the project, she says, “Wherever we went in villages, children were hungry for stories, even those who had never actually read a book in their lives because they didn't have any access to books. Once they got books, they wanted more.”

Wracking their brains as to how to provide children access to reading material, in places where there were no book shops or libraries, Anand and her team set up small libraries in remote villages came up with the idea of a ‘wall newspaper’.

“On a designated wall in the village, we would stick a saree or a dhoti; children would do their own writing, their drawings and everything and stick that on to the designated place. And so, 20-25 children could write at the same time and equivalent number of children would be reading at the same time,” Anand describes. Engaging with children, she discovered their infinite wisdom, their awareness level, what they grapple with and what they want.  

“Children are so kind, so powerful but we have to empower them,” Anand believes.  

The plots and characters in Anand’s stories also draw inspiration from children. She has worked with over 3 lakh children during her journey. As she says, “I find it hard to write in a vacuum. Writing in itself is a solitary activity, so when I interact with children, I ask them about the stories they want to read. Their answers are what I write.”  

Discipline required

Writing demanding tremendous focus and discipline, Anand has set a rule for herself. “I was given a secret formula which is not a secret anymore, by my friend and colleague Uma Krishnaswami (children’s author) which is BIC – ‘Bottom In Chair'. If you want to be a writer, just sit down and write.”

She has set up a target of writing two hours every day. If she falls short, she makes up for it on weekend. While she has a dedicated cottage in the garden for writing, she has learnt not to wait for perfect time and space and can write anywhere. “I love traffic jams and delayed flights when I put on my ear phones and start writing. It will never be perfect, so don’t wait for perfection.”

As regards developing the plot, she says, “Writing a novel is running a marathon. When you are running a marathon, it starts with the first step and then the next step and so on. You do not have to think of the end goal, you draw on your own reserves and run and that’s exactly what writing is also – 'it is one step at a time'.

The second thing that she stresses, especially about fiction writing, is that let the story lead you; it takes on a life on its own.  

Anand’s own favourites

It’s Harry Potter. “Rowling put to bed the naysayers. She had been rejected by seven different publishers, who said the books were too long and complex and that the plot was too interwoven with too many characters. But when it came out, they had to bring out editions in different covers, because grownup men in ties and briefcases did not want to be seen in subway reading a children’s book. And the publishers probably suggested to her not to use her name Joanne because boys would not read a book written by a woman. Hence, KJ Rowling, a gender-neutral name. But when her identity came out, boys didn’t stop reading.” That’s a heartfelt praise from one children’s author to another author.

Upasana .

BW Reporters The author works as a Senior Copy Editor with BW Businessworld and currently handles the education vertical. She has done her Post Graduate Diploma in English Journalism from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (NER Campus, Aizawl).

Meha Mathur

BW Reporters The author works as Senior Associate Editor with BW Businessworld