SOULspace

So "Simba the lion learns to roar", was the story for this Saturday. A wonderful time for me and the children. Hand puppets transported us to the jungle. Through this adaptation of a story,of a lion cub who finds his roar only when he faces danger, I tried to make the children more aware of their inner strength. That we can do what we want when the time is right and when we are ready for it! This was followed by a paper lion puppet making session. All in all, a super time for me and my kids. I must thank my nieces here, for totally taking care of my son, who dislikes sharing me with the audience. So my friend(my son!) wants to sit on my lap during the session, or he constantly bombards me with questions, so i am unable to proceed, and don't know whether i am coming or going! Luckily. this time I had help and as he was not there, i could concentrate on the story. The opposite goes for my daughter who gets so thoroughly involved in the story and activity, that I can say sh...

Just yesterday i had written that i liked to tell Indian stories, so you must be wondering why I am here talking about a phoren one! You see Roald Dahl is so doable !! His stories have all the action, drama, and magic that Indian stories have and the animal characters can become anyone you know, that makes it easier to show to children. Enormous Crocodile, for those who have not read the story, is about a nasty croc. who likes to eat children. Gruesome , i know, but then i start my session by telling the children that such things dont exist and a story is a story.( I know some pragmatists can be up in arms that I am filling children up with nonsense, but then does everything have to make sense? Let them enjoy the nonsense, says moi .). Irresponsible!! Most of my puppets are made with paper, the medium I prefer, and I combine this with voice modulation. The second time I did this story, it was like a puppet show, and the children liked it even more. All of them crowding to try their...

The story of Bhasmasuran and Mohini is generations old, most probably its origin can be traced to the Mahabharatha ( I am not sure) but I know a very similar story does exist in it. Any way this story is one of my favourites, (published by NBP, Nehru Bal Pusthakalaya), an old copy exists with me. (Just going off the track, want to mention how we thamizh, like our spellings well rounded, any one else will spell Bhasmasuran as Bhasmasura, and Pustakalaya as Pustakalay...but i just cant do it!!) Now, where was I? Yes, I enjoy telling this story, for which I have made a pretty Mohini puppet with paper and a large Bhasmasuran with thermocol, wool and paper. He actually looks funny, rather than scary. That's how I wanted it. Its done the rounds so is slightly worse for wear, but, the story enthralls my audience, who love the end. Indian stories are so much fun to tell. An interesting site that you can check out to get some Indian stories, shlokas is Raja Thathas corner. Very interestin...