Grooming Babies, the people behind Under The Peepal Tree and Ramleela both of which were lovely and off beat shows have orchestrated another event that looks just as promising. The title of the story is BHAARAT and it is an adaptation of the ancient poem Shakuntala by Kalidas. Since our country derives the name Bharatvarsh from the mighty King Bharat, he is the protagonist of our story says Oindrila Purohit, founder Grooming Babies. It is he who will take the children back in time and tell them how his mum and dad met, rather the source from which he inherits his benevolence and might.

The session will interweave elements of theater, dramatized storytelling, craft based activities and rhythmic lyrics. The set design is abstract to ignite children’s imagination. Since the attempt is to relive the characters and the situation, kids along with their parents will create the props required for the story to unfold through art and craft, and use it through dramatized actions during the show.

The key essence of the story is in the message that it aims to convey – coexistence with nature, empathy, importance of keeping promises and family love. At the end each child will be crowned – to signify they are as Bhaarat themselves. It is targeted at preschool children in the age group of 2-7 years and their parents. The duration of the show will be 90 minutes.

What to expect:

1. Dramatized storytelling with rhyming verses forming an integral part. Young children show more understanding when spoken in a rhythmic or sing song manner. Keeping this in mind, each scene includes a rhyming verse that the children can say along. Also some of the popular nursery rhymes have been incorporated to enhance the elements of drama.

2. Character creation, prop making so parents can keep retelling the story again and again.

3. The activities include making rag puppets, messy coloring, paper craft and origami. Though the making process is extremely simple, keeping the age group in mind, lot of thought has been given to appeal to a child’s imagination. For example the rag puppet is largely unstructured with the dolls having no features. This way the children are able to bring something of themselves into the story, and they will have plenty of scope to build their own internal images into it.

It will be hosted by Joy Fernandez – a prominent theater artist with 25 years of exposure to national & international stage, television and films. He has worked extensively with children in the past and will be supported by members of the Grooming Baby team with early childcare background.

This is an initiative of Grooming Babies Global Pvt. Ltd. a company formed by a group of women who have willingly stepped aside from their corporate careers to make child upbringing a priority. The belief is – to groom children as the leaders of tomorrow and a must to make them emotionally secure and keep them mentally stimulated. RELIVE THE STORY is one of the company’s initiatives that exposes children to the rich cultural heritage of India and gives parents a platform to creatively bond with their child.

RELIVE THE STORY was first launched last year with RAMLEELA for children, depicted through an interactive puppet show.

Details:

15th August West Room, NCPA, Nariman Point: 4.00 p.m. & 6.30 p.m.

24th August: CPA Hall, Mithibai College, Vile Parle ( W)

Registration Fees: Rs 650 for the child(includes all materials) & Rs 150 for the accompanying adult.

Tickets can be booked on Bookmyshow.com or call +919819554496

Duration: 90 minutes.

Participation of a parent or family member is mandatory. Maids or nannies or caretakers are strictly not allowed.