From their respective bases in Kuwait and San Francisco, two sisters are winning hearts on Instagram with their old-school animations driven by childhood memories
An animation made by the sisters that depicts a rainy day in India
A scroll through the @bohrasisters page on Instagram will leave you feeling wistful and longing for the return of a bygone era. It might even make you reminisce about those old-school picture books with loud, colourful illustrations that tell stories of busy marketplaces, foods and people. It’s a trip down memory lane, only now it’s digital. The page, which belongs to sisters Zainab, the younger sibling based in Kuwait, and Sakina Sabunwala from San Francisco, is a collection of stop-motion animation videos, many inspired by their own childhoods and experiences that are illustrated and produced entirely by the duo.
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“We started our Instagram page as a hobby in 2015. We wanted to do something in collaboration with each other, where we could both put our hobbies to use — mine, making animations, and my sister’s, drawing. Our idea was to create videos to showcase our childhood memories, something we could later visit and smile about,” says Zainab.
The videos are a labour of love; an ode to the duo’s grandparents, who appear often throughout the page. Each animation is also accompanied by an old Hindi number, from the ’60s or the ’70s, that pairs perfectly with the theme of each video. “We love Indian music, especially the classics that came out in the 1960s and ’70s. We have grown up listening to them since our parents used to love it too. They would always play them on tape recorders back then while going about daily household chores,” she adds. Some of their more recent videos also showcase scenes from local lemonade shops, chai sellers and juice makers that attempt to draw focus on the practice of supporting small businesses and communities.
“Our favourite part is that we get to relive our childhood through these videos. Nothing can replace that feeling when we get the same response from our followers. There is too much negativity in today’s world and this gives us a platform to spread happiness,” Zainab signs off.
Log on to: @bohrasisters on Instagram
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