World Storytelling Day: Meet Bengaluru's storytellers

A few generations ago, one of the favourite pastimes of the older lot in a family was to gather around the young impressionable minds and regale them with glorious tales about their ancestors, mythology and fantasy, among others. It didn’t matter if the protagonists had their happy-ever-after life, as long as there was a definite message in the narrative.But as years progressed, families shrunk and technology took precedence in our lives, the likes of Dora, Doraemon, Ninja Hattori, Pokemon, etc., took over this space, supposedly as learning tools, but offering nothing much on that account. But if the sustained efforts of a bunch of women continue to be fruitful, this scenario could see a marked difference. Across the country, oral storytelling is witnessing resurgence, and several Bengalureans are at the forefront of this movement, pushing the boundaries of the applications of this art form. On World Storytelling Day, BT explores the scenario.
Founder member of the Bangalore Storytelling Society, Aparna Athreya, for instance, is thrilled that people are not only taking the art form back to its roots -- to a time when it was used extensively as tool of communication and education and to understand societal aspects or advise caution, as the case may be – but are also pushing it ahead, beyond boundaries that were thought to exist. “These days, we are using storytelling intelligently in the new-age set of ways of life. Earlier, people’s well-being was taken care of based on how society was structured. But today it is such that everyone’s in a nuclear family, has no time for anything and is in an inclusive and isolated environment, which pushes the need for therapy and counseling. We have discovered that storytelling is a great means for narrative counseling. We use it as a catharsis tool for people who have undergone trauma. Corporate leadership teams use personal stories to weave into the organizational narrative or use business stories to get across to the outside world. Storytelling is even being used in education and not only for languages, but the application of subjects like mathematics and science as well. It has been a very transformational journey,” explains Aparna, adding that teachers today not only need to be subject-matter experts and researchers, but good storytellers as well and are being trained in the art form.
Presentation, adds Shreya Biswas of Kathayalaya, is a key element of storytelling. “Even though I have used the art form back in the day when I was a teacher to get the attention of the students in my class, it wasn’t until I attended a storytelling session at the British Council that I realized the importance of how a story is presented. The person who was conducting that session narrated three tales, all of which I knew, but what struck me was the way he told it. And I figured that if you know stories and can tell them, you just need to do it differently. It is not just about telling stories, but using them as well. Stories are metaphorical; they hold information, entertainment and values that you need to be mature enough to understand. And that’s why storytelling is not limited to children alone,” says Shreya.
Taking the artform to the board room, as Aparna stated, takes boredom out of statistics and figures, adds Shreya. “It really helps people remember what you want to say. Listeners then begin to empathize with the characters and relate to the story or incidents, and eventually open up to share their own stories, thereby starting a conversation – a scenario that has been missing from our lives,” she says.
And while those responsible for the upswing of the art form are happy with its growth trajectory, they agree that there is still plenty of room for more and that people need to see it more than just a pastime and instead as a full-time profession.
“Anything in life cannot be taken in isolation. I can’t say I am great in mathematics and want to make a living out of it. You have to be generalist with core skills. Similar is the case with storytelling. If you are purist and say storytelling is what I know and I need to make a living, it is a very isolated niche skill. You need to see how it can be applied in a larger context to today’s world. For instance, when it comes to narrative counseling, I need to know the fundamentals of counseling, interpersonal relationship and how to elicit stories from them by which I can understand the person, work out a solution for them or point them in the direction of a solution. In essence, I use a multiple set of skills, in which storytelling is the core skill set. Storytelling as a pure performance art may not help you make a living; it needs to evolve,” Aparna signs off.