A room full of books makes me giddy with joy. But a room full of books for children - hand-picked because they have been read, loved and chosen to be where they are - sets the bar even higher
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Kahani Tree, Prabhadevi (Indoors)
A room full of books makes me giddy with joy. But a room full of books for children - hand-picked because they have been read, loved and chosen to be where they are - sets the bar even higher.
Kahani Tree, a small children's bookstore in Prabhadevi, offers a curated selection of unusual books by independent publishers from all over India and the world. The walls of the well-lit space are lined neatly with titles of all sizes and colours. Also, this is one of the few bookstores that offers a range of bilingual and regional-language books. Kahani Tree's goal, since inception, has been to make children take to reading. As a result, everything here - curating titles and recommending selections to schools, establishing libraries and reading corners with non-profits, and holding author sessions and workshops for children and teachers - is well thought-out and holistic.
I walk in with the kids for a storytelling event, and there's a happy vibe in the air. Once the event is over, the euphoria lingers and we decide to stay on and do a bit of book browsing-cum-shopping. There is no basket given to us at the shop, no one hovers around unless you ask for help, and you can spend hours browsing through books lined up face-out, reading blurbs, flipping through pages and sometimes, reading the whole book. There is a small table and chairs around it that invite you to sit down and read. The kids have been told they can buy what they like, provided they pick at least one Indian author.
And that is the best thing about Kahani Tree. This is the only bookstore I can head to knowing that the best in India and abroad is probably featured here. What's more, if there is a book that you have heard of and is not available at the store, then all you need to do is place a request and the book will be sourced.
Initiated by Sangeeta Bhansali, who heads the publishing division of Vakils, Kahani Tree took baby steps before it became what it is today. A parent herself, Bhansali started it when she came across Tullika books in 2006 and realised there were many independent publishers of children's books in India that did not reach bookstore chains in the city and were inaccessible to children. Sangeeta went about looking for more such unique books that had fun, interesting stories, which were not didactic and value-based. And she was surprised to discover that besides English, these books were also available in Hindi and regional languages. She then cajoled Vakils into giving her one wall in their office to showcase books by these publishers. And from that, it has now grown into a full-fledged bookstore that holds a wide and diverse range of the best children's books in the world.
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