There are over 800 stalls at the ongoing Chennai Book Fair. All of them look identical, with metal racks, posters on the walls announcing new titles, tables stacked high with books. But stall no 804 is different. It belongs to the bilingual children’s magazine Thumbi .
The small space looks like it’s living and breathing — there are five gigantic dragonfly figurines suspended from the ceiling, and six metal miniatures perched on the shelves. The walls, covered in off-white cotton cloth, sport paper butterflies. The interiors have been done up entirely with upcycled material by coconut shell artisan and zero-waste wedding decorator Ananda Perumal.
“I used discarded caps of cold drink bottles for the dragonflies’ eyes,” explains the artist. “For the wings, I used cloth bags.” For its anatomy, he employed bamboo sticks he found at the venue. “They came with the packaging material,” he explains.
The idea, according to Ananda, is to offer fodder for the inquisitive minds of children who visit the stall. “Children admire and appreciate anything new,” he adds. “This will also be a space for them to learn something.” He’s talking about putting waste to good use.
Among the highlights of the interiors are the wooden racks. “They are made out of discarded wooden cartons we collected from the Chennai harbour,” says Ananda. The design is basic, and Ananda says that the rack can be taken apart and be reassembled. “We’ve kept it simple so that people can employ the design for their furniture at home,” he explains.
The stall is devoid of plastic: banners are made of cotton cloth, with hand-written lettering. And then there’s the wooden rocking horse that stands at the entrance. “Everyone’s taking photos with it,” smiles Ananda. “Adults, especially, say that it brings back fond memories from their childhood.”
The Chennai Book Fair is on till January 20 at YMCA Grounds, Nandanam.
