The magical moment captured in this photo happened about 8 years ago. It was probably my second visit to Spiti Valley, when I visited a government school in a Spitian village. I was carrying a few books which I wanted to leave behind for children to enjoy. And were they excited! I honestly hadn’t expected […]
Leaving on a Jet Plane Read More »
Last week we at Let’s Open a Book set up a stall at the 3-day Ladarcha Fair in Kaza, Spiti Valley. Ladarcha Fair is a state-level cultural festival, the largest annual event of the Spiti valley. Our stall was inaugurated by Anuradha Rana Ji, MLA Lahaul-Spiti, together with ADC Rahul Jain Ji and SDM Harsh
Ladarcha Mela 2024 Read More »
I love creating ‘aha!’ moments for children through book recommendations at Let’s Open a Book. While children who come to our library have the agency to make their own selections, and we never force them to read books that we have selected for them, I love it when my recommendations tickle them, inspire them or
Just like with any other start-up, being the sole founder of Let’s Open a Book means I play multiple roles. I’m the organization’s storyteller, library educator, resident artist and art teacher, dance teacher, trainer, operations head, fundraiser, accountant, social media manager, PR person, cleaner etc etc all rolled into one. I am required to switch
A woman with many hats! Read More »
In a couple of weeks’ time, I’ll be on my way to Spiti. As I prepare for the long, challenging journey ahead, I think back to all the times I’ve travelled to Spiti. My first trip to Spiti was in 2017. At that time, I was completely mesmerised by the breathtaking views. Over the years,
A couple of days ago, we celebrated Holi at our Manali library. It was wonderful to smear gulaal on everyone’s faces! We shared mithai and listened to music afterwards. But our Holi was special for a particular reason. We played ‘safe’ Holi. This meant that no one was forced to do anything that they didn’t
Moving to a place where winter temperatures can dip down to sub-zero had never been on my list. In fact, I hated being in cold places. Ironically, though, the two places where we work via Let’s Open a Book – Spiti and Manali, both experience freezing winter temperatures. I spent my first winter in Manali
10,000. That’s the number of books that have been read at Let’s Open a Book’s Spiti library in the last six months. I’m preparing for our first board meeting of the year when I realize this, and I take a moment to let this sink in. There are some more numbers which catch my attention
The 10,000 Milestone Read More »
11 year old B has recently started coming to our Manali library. He is shy and sincere. He arrives exactly at opening time, picks up a book of his choice and keeps reading attentively until closing time. He also borrows a book every day, to read at home. B hardly ever talks, except yesterday, when
A difficult, heartfelt conversation Read More »
A question that I often get asked is “How did you figure out that you wanted to run a free community library”? It was a process that unfolded slowly and organically. It helped that I had been a voracious reader when I was growing up. And that I had had volunteering experience in the free
Running a free library Read More »
