My latest book project is a bit different from the other traditional books I have worked on. The Story of Me is a bedtime book of rhymes about how a baby came to be born.

 

The different part is that readers can get a 'personalised' version of it printed specially for their child. Parents can choose the family they most resemble, add a dedication and their own names, and get a printed book unique to themselves!

 

 

This was one of those projects that required a good amount of digital tinkering around to make different options in the same illustration. While I usually love making my art as a whole on paper, this one involved sheets and sheets of tracing paper and putting it all together in digital layers.

 

 

You can try playing with it online, and your customised preview is free to see! Eventually, there will be more options, including choosing individual characters and family types, adding personal photographs, etc.

 

Part of the book proceeds go to Room to Read, a non-profit working to provide quality education to children in low-income communities. More on the Manimal Tales website.

I have been an animal lover ever since I remember. It has never taken much to melt my heart; the stray dog around the corner or the chattering bird at the window wins my love and sympathy in a moment. But what evokes an especially tender feeling in me is the sight of the adorable and incredibly gentle creature that is the donkey.

If you have lived in or travelled around India, you know we share (willingly or not) our public spaces, even buildings, staircases and homes, with animals. As a child I saw much of donkeys; they would be standing quietly on the streets, heads hanging low, something almost sad in those beautiful eyes. In most cases they'd be beasts of burden, and though the sight of them has reduced over the years, I have always thought they looked kind and gentle... and perhaps, tired.
My recent project with SPANA is a picture book called 'Looking for Nieba'. Set in Africa, it is a story about Dankoraba and Nieba, two donkeys who are the best of friends. They live together, work together, and know the best places to rest and roll around. They share their food and shelter, and are inseparable.



Until one day, Nieba is taken away to work elsewhere.

Dankoraba, alone and heartbroken without his friend, decides to set off in search of her.




The project allowed me a glimpse of life in Africa, especially Bamako, in Mali, where the story is set. It also showed me the sad reality of animals working in rubbish dumps in some parts of the world.


But the story ends on a happy note, owing to the compassion of the people caring for the two friends, and I hope that is true, atleast in some part, for the real Dankorabas and Niebas of this world.

I've just received my copy of 'Looking for Nieba'!
It is a story I worked on, set in Bamako, Mali about two donkeys who are the best of friends (more about it here). So happy to hold a physical copy!



This project allowed me to discover a wonderful charity by the name of SPANA.

They work to provide medical support for working animals all over the world. This work helps make life better not just for the animals but also for the the families that employ and care for them. What's more, SPANA also helps train local communities in basic animal care and believes in spreading a message of compassion towards working animals. This book was commissioned to further that cause.

Do visit their website to know more about their invaluable work!


The book is also translated into French. Hannah and Christelle from SPANA (the nicest people to work with) let me try doing hand-drawn cover typography for both titles!

Little Mia from 'In My Heart' knows she is adopted and loves her adoptive parents dearly. How can she not, when she came from their hearts? It is why they are so alike and love the same things!





The book, published by Penguin India, takes us with Mia on her journey to find her Tummy Mummy. Will she find her? And where? The story builds on Nandana's own experience of having an adopted daughter, and of the love that binds different families together - biological or not.

My third Auroville book is now out! This was another of those wonderful opportunities where I had to create monochrome illustrations  for a story, apart from the cover which is in colour.


Those of you who know me would know how I struggle with colour. It is something that does not come instinctively to me, like gestures or facial expressions; rather it is something I work hard at, agonising over every decision, and failing very often!

So working in black and white is very freeing. Of course, the book is not for very young readers, and really lends itself to this colour choice.


Our protagonist Yusuf, a keen disciple of his learned Guru, is put to the test when he is given a little box to deliver to his Guru's friend many miles away. At first, Yusuf can see only his duty, but as the journey progresses, his mind begins to wander. What could be in this little box? And will Yusuf perform his duty in the face of his overwhelming curiosity?




'Yusuf and the Little Mouse' is an ancient story, retold by the Mother, of one of the simplest, but most difficult aspect of our lives; being aware of and having mastery over our minds.

Every year, the Internationale Jugendbibliothek or the International Youth Library in Munich recommends books from all over the world in its prestigious annual catalogue and gives them the badge of White Raven. This year, there are 200 titles chosen from 59 countries in 38 languages. Among these are some absolute beauties like Franklin's Flying Bookshop, Mrs. Noah's Pockets (illustrated by the wonderful James Mayhew who was one of our much loved tutors), Imaginary Fred and The Journey.

Dance of the Wild is the only one from India that made it to the 2018 list! It is humbling to be among such wonderful company.

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I think it is really beautiful to have such a variety of books in one catalogue. Every culture, every language has a different way of approaching a picturebook. There are so many beautiful books for children from all over the world, and it is very inspiring to learn about them.


Here are some I'd love to get a closer look at, although I'm sure there are many more lovely ones I haven't managed to mention here.





In the order of the images above:







In addition to being included in the catalogue, 'Dance of the Wild' was appreciated closer to home too. It was runner up for the 'Children's Book of the Year' award at the Publishing Next Awards 2018 and was an In-book winner of the Kyoorius Design Awards 2018, which meant we got to bring home this little Baby Elephant! I call her Baby Ellie; isn't she adorable?



Thank you to everyone who appreciated the book, it is heartening to know that an Indian book with a subject like this can be so well received.

This is a long overdue post about a recent book I've worked on, called Dance of the Wild, written by a wonderful, and always smiling, lady called Richa Jha. It is safe to say this was the longest I'd ever worked on a commission, and I loved every bit of it.


This was an artist's heaven for me, because Richa was patient with me when I was silent for months, doing very few drawings but just mulling it over in my mind, especially in the early stages. Fortunately, Richa also heads Pickle Yolk Books, a small and brave independent Indian publishing house (who published this story), and could allow this pace of working.


We were both doing other projects on the side, and I know how difficult I can be with my solitude during work, but she never rushed me. Whenever I sent in work for her to see, her sunny responses warmed me in that manner that lone artists know so well. It takes great strength of character to be like that; it's what good editors and publishers are made of, and it is why I continue to admire the person she is.


Her absolutely endearing story of Shilu (and her beloved cat Pirate) had me smitten from the start. It is born of the most basic instinct we have of wanting to be free, even of the very clothes on our person. Children express this more openly than adults, of course, because they're yet to learn the ways of the world, but we all feel it, and as we grow, we (hopefully) learn to navigate through those feelings.


The book does the same, and having it set in India makes it significant. In a country where there have historically been countless (and extremely varying) perceptions about clothing and nudity, it is not easy to tell a child what is 'right'. What we can do is to allow the child to see different versions of what could be right, without stifling the inner voice that yearns for freedom!


The book is available to buy in paperback and hardcover here and there is also a larger sized limited edition hardback (the one shown in the photographs above) which one could request for if so inclined. For those in India, here is a faster way to get hold of the paperback.

Hope you and your little ones enjoy it!

Childhood is just not complete without the amusing game of looking up at the sky and noticing the shapes clouds make as they drift along. The more you look, the more shapes you see, and just as a shape in the sky can be interesting, so can it also be fleeting; to be quickly replaced by another!



'Look Up!' is my third Tulika book and it is about just these fun shapes in the sky and two little children looking up at them!


As with a lot of Tulika titles, it is bilingual (English coupled with one of eight Indian languages) and can be bought here. Written by Kavitha Punniyamurthi, this book can be enjoyed by even the littlest ones!

The little parrot in our story lives in a beautiful forest and has many friends, but is put to the test when a fire breaks out. What can a little bird like him do against a raging fire?


It is a story of the triumph of a strong will; of unswerving hope in the face of all odds.



It is my second 'Auroville' book published by the Sri Aurobindo International Institute of Educational Research, and is available to buy online.



P.S: There's something about this book that is of an added significance to me. The story has been retold (from the ancient folk tale that it is) by none other than my teenage niece! She's the second in the family with a flair for writing (the other is my very eloquent younger cousin sister) and it just makes me think of my hugely talented cousins, my kind, loving parents and aunts and uncles, my grandparents who had hearts of gold, and the absolute delights that are my nieces and nephew! To have such a family is to be lucky indeed.