“Stories are our primary tools of learning and teaching, the repositories of our lore and legends. They bring order into our confusing world.” – Edward Miller

To introduce children to the beauty of the world of stories, a Story Telling session was conducted for the students of Class IV at the Sushila Devi Auditorium on Monday, December 3, 2018.

International Story Teller Deepa Kiran infused life into the story with her colloquial touch and created a dramatic effect with the help of ektara, dafli, damru etc and a little bit of dance. The excited students were left spellbound to hear the story of an old woman who was saved from the clutches of a wicked Genie due to the presence of mind of her young daughter.

Ms. Kiran is based in Hyderabad and is the first Indian to have been invited to Iran’s prestigious Kanoon Storytelling Festival. She is a multi-lingual and speaks in her native tongue Tamil, as well as in Hindi, Telugu, English, Malayalam, Bengali, Marathi, Punjabi, and Kannada.

The session was part of the BhuFeSto, the Bhubaneswar Festival of International Storytelling Project and curated by Bakul Foundation in collaboration with Bhubaneswar Development Authority.

Stories are an integral part of one’s childhood. From the various treasured moments of life, listening stories from a family member especially parents or grandparents remain as the most valued memories. Stories take to another land, connect you with unknown people and places and stay in your heart and mind for a long time to come.

It is also a great way to enrich vocabulary, learn about lost cultures and traditions, teach values and develop imagination. It is an interactive activity which not only strengthens bond but also develops emotional intelligence and expands memory.