What’s the one connecting factor among the children of the hills, the sea, villages, towns, and cities? Stories. They may lead completely different lives, but these children are like libraries that record the unique stories associated with their landscapes. Sivaraj, the editor of bilingual children’s magazine Thumbi , wants to document these stories in the upcoming editions of the magazine.
To celebrate Thumbi’s successful run into the second year — the first edition of the Tamil and English monthly came out in June 2016 — Sivaraj and team celebrate their success with a children’s theatre festival across Tamil Nadu . Their next stop is Chennai, followed by Kalpakkam — the event was held in Coimbatore and Erode earlier this month and travels to Madurai in January.
“An ordinary story can create the greatest magic,” says Sivaraj. “This is the core of the theatre festival. We are travelling with our plays from one place to another, taking in the songs and stories of the children from the locality in the process. We plan to publish them, along with the children’s art works, in our upcoming editions.”
The plays that are part of the festival have been helmed by theatre actor Ramraj, an assistant professor of Tamil at PSG College of Arts & Science, Coimbatore. “His team, consisting of students from the college, has picked stories by Tamil writers Ki Rajanarayanan, Ku Alagirisami, and Vannadasan,” he explains.
A chair is at the centre-stage in one play, while another revolves around an old woman’s tree. “Ramraj brings together the sensibilities of simple street-theatre and modern theatre in his works,” he adds.
“With minimal props except for masks made by the actors themselves, the team brings alive the masterpieces with their voices and music,” says Sivaraj. The audience will be given packets of seeds and a cloth bag to take away. “We hope that the children plant the seeds and nurture a plant back home,” he says.
Much like how a good children’s novel draws readers of all ages, the theatre festival too is not restricted to children. Says Sivaraj: “We, in fact, want adults to watch the plays. The theatre festival is, at its soul, targeted at adults — at the warm place in their hearts that retains the child in them.”
Thumbi’s children’s theatre festival is on at Madras Literary Society, 3.30 pm to 4.30 pm on December 23 and Slum Clearance Housing Board, Semmancheri (behind Sathyabama University) , 3 pm to 5 pm on December 24. For details, call 9843870059. Entry is free.
