City hosts India's first 'children content' fest

KOLKATA: Kolkata is playing host to the country's first festival of children's content - modelled on the biggest such event held in Singapore every year. The unique fair is a shared brainchild of National Book Trust (NBT), Future Foundation School, and the Publishers and Booksellers Guild.
The 'Kolkata Festival of Children's Content' will now be an annual event - India's answer to such exhibitions across the world.The six-day event was inaugurated by actor and wildlife photographer Sabyasachi Chakraborty at Future Foundation School on Monday.
The week-long festival will celebrate children's literature and illustration, and the interactions will give inputs on how to design and package books better so that the next generation continues to share the love of the written word, say the organizers. "We are reintroducing books to the gadget generation," said school principal Ranjan Mitter. "We want children to smell the books, touch them and rediscover the power of imagination. That Kolkata was chosen for this unique event is a tribute to the city of joy," he said.
Chakraborty, also a well known travel writer, said he plans to write a book for children to help them bond with the charm of the forests. "I do not believe that the young generation has entirely moved away from books, but we need to help them reconnect with the magic of creating self-impressions. Events such as these are a great opportunity," he said.
Manas Ranjan Mahapatra, editor of NBT's centre for children's literature, confirmed that this would be an annual event. Kolkata was chosen as the venue for its "wealth of children's writing", he said. "We have to design our books more smartly to wean children away from TV. The book is a very powerful medium. We have to make it interesting for the young generation," he said.
The fair is open to everyone and students from other schools attended the inauguration on Monday. One of the highlights is an interaction with author Paro Anand on Thursday.