The author of Tula Journey, Gunjan Adya still tears up when she talks about how she went about publishing her first book. She calls it an emotional journey that she embarked upon without a plan. Gunjan is an expressive arts therapist whose first book, Tula Journey, (Harper Collins)is a journal aimed at helping people understand themselves better.
In the author’s words, “It will be a helpful travelling partner, someone who will make your baggage a little lighter. It might also be that friend you might meet every now and then to relive the journey and tell stories of your adventures.”
Tea preparation in progress | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Gunjan was in Hyderabad at Good Earth for a ‘tea journalling’ session. Why tea? “I take my morning cup of tea seriously. Journalling is a process that needs to have a mood setter. Also, a lot of us tend to ponder on a lot of things while having our tea or coffee .”
Published in 2022, the 256-page journal with prompts in the form of pictures of dragonflies, butterflies and lotus includes thought-provoking everyday questions such as one good memory or a dish you want to cook whenever you are free etc. Gunjan says, “Small habits lead to big changes. And this is where you begin. So, take a pause to check yourself; let go of all that is weighing you down and get ready to understand and appreciate your innermost feelings.
Ludhiana-based Gunjan was a trained artist who worked as a graphic designer before her marriage. . Gunjan says, “With marriage and kids, work took a backseat and I got back to work only after my children grew up and were on their own. In the meanwhile, as a trained artist, I took up painting professionally. That was when I came across the Expressive Art Therapy course. I signed up immediately — without any research — thinking it would improve my art skills, and help me catch up with the latest in my field of work, especially as I had not ‘worked’ in a long time. On the first day itself, I realised it was nothing about improving my art skills.”
pariticipants at the event
The author explains, “At the end of the three-month course in 2016, which was about creating the most absurd art forms, I found that it was about expressing yourself through scribbles, splashes and colours. Yet, In the process, I found myself peeling myself like an onion, meeting my good and dark sides.” She felt she had met herself all over again, as an honest person.
“I had the habit of maintaining a diary; not a fancy one with locks, pictures and all. It was a bunch of unused pages from my children’s record book. There, I would write down my small goals, my triumphs and things that needed attention in the house or myself. After the expressive art therapy course, I felt I could combine both and help my friends and acquaintances to deal with their issues. Since I am not licensed to be a counsellor, I felt I could only ‘prompt’ people to write their thoughts and understand themselves.”
Gunjan says that friends who she assisted or suggested to begin journalling were able identify issues that was with them, “issues such as bitterness with self, the tendency to procrastinate and hoard.”
The feedback from her friends was encouraging. Those who liked it couldn’t stop appreciating it and “those who were not ready for it were honest about not disturbing the status quo. This made me realise that journalling is a personal journey. It is not easy for anyone to suddenly start writing their thoughts on an absolute blank book, it was intimidating.”
During the pandemic, her friends and acquaintances reached out to her to ‘talk’. “Since I am not qualified to give advice, I simply asked them to journal and see how they felt. This helped in creating a guide to journalling,” she adds.
Along with a few artists and designers, Gunjan worked to make journalling an easy path. “My book was ready and as a member of a book club in Ludhiana, I asked if it could be published. I heard from the publisher after three months. That was the most magical moment for me.”
