Tulika celebrates 15 years!

February 2011

The kaka sings . . . .

Tulika started publishing multilingual childrens books in 1996. Fifteen years on, the Tulika kaka is busier than ever. And, save three months right at the beginning when kaka nested in a one-room hall on top of a flight of rickety iron stairs, home was 13, Prithvi Avenue, First Street, Abhiramapuram, Chennai 600 018. People have come, and mostly stayed; interns have summered, and wintered too; more tables, chairs and computers have found space. But most of all, there have been books, books, books Today, with more than 300 titles and the wind beneath its wings, the Tulika kaka calls in many voices, many languages, many images, to children and parents and teachers, but most of all to children of all ages. For 15 years, Tulikas effort has been unwavering: to create quality books for children in a range of Indian languages with writing and art that combine the traditional and the contemporary in fresh, exciting ways; to create books that reflect experiences of living in a plural and diverse society and of different childhoods in an economically and socially divided world. Most of all, to make the books accessible to all children everywhere. Doing this has been unbelievably challenging and enriching.

in many languages . . .
Most of the books come in English and eight other Indian languages. They bring to children stories of the real and the fantastical, folktales and myths retold in contemporary ways offering new insights, explorations of wildlife and environment, slices of history and geography, scents of people and places. At this very moment, the Tulika bookshelves hold a staggering 954 titles in English, Hindi, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu, Marathi, Gujarati and Bangla. English - 160 Hindi - 123 Tamil - 125 Malayalam - 69 Kannada - 116 Telugu - 102 Marathi - 90 Gujarati - 88 Bangla - 81

Of these, 37 are bilingual titles: English with the eight Indian languages we publish in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, Malayalam, Marathi, Gujarati and Bangla. Not to forget the odd book in Oriya (Riddle of the Ridley), Urdu (My Mothers Sari and The Mountain that Loves a Bird), Nepali (Takdir the Tiger Cub). It doesnt end here because Additionally, Line and Circle, Takdir the Tiger Cub and My Mothers Sari have been done in French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian, Serbo-Croat, Somali, Dutch, German, Malay, French, Arabic, Albanian, Chinese, Czech, Farsi, Italian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Turkish, Urdu and Vietnamese for readers in the UK and US.

in many voices . . .
Making this journey possible have been our authors, illustrators, translators, interns and printers. In the last 15 years, we have worked with 100 authors, 55 illustrators, 6 photographers, 100 translators, 27 interns and 15 printers. The fabulous galaxy include writers, poets, thinkers, activists, teachers, artists, each opening up and extending our understanding of childrens books. The list is long and impressive: acclaimed writers Kalpana Swaminathan, Gita Hariharan, Manjula Padmanabhan, Paul Zacharia, strong feminist writers Suniti Namjoshi, Ambai and Kamla Bhasin, internationally acclaimed performance storytellers Cathy Spagnoli, Vayu Naidu and Jeeva Raghunath, peace activist Graeme MacQueen, award-winning wildlife filmmaker and conservationist Shekar Dattatri, teacher and animation filmmaker Nina Sabnani, renowned artists Paritosh Sen and A V Ilango, popular radio jockey Suchitra Ramadurai, culture critic and historian Lata Mani, archaeologist Shanti Pappu, gifted childrens book illustrators Ashok Rajagopalan, Ranjan De (who created the Tulika logo), Srividya Natarajan, Manjula Padamanabhan (again!), the best of childrens writers like Zai Whitaker, Ranjit Lal and of course Tulikas own editor Sandhya Rao. While the illustrious ones bring the richness of experience, fresh new talent keeps us on our toes!

through many kinds of books . . .

Picture books and Bilingual Picture Books for 2-8 yr olds that come in several delightful series such as: Wordbird books Imagine Words In Verse Thumb Thumb books Our Myths Fiction and Non-fiction for 8+ that cover many genres under thought-provoking series heads:

 Classics in Translation Fact + Fiction Read and Colour books Where I Live Think About In Focus Looking at Art Green books And last but certainly not the least the Tulika Teacher Resources.

travelling far and wide. . .

Sometimes, especially in the early years of our ambitious multilingual publishing, it seemed we had to follow Tagores dictum of walking alone. But as our readers swelled in numbers, many groups have joined hands with us to co-publish in different languages in India and overseas: Kerala State Institute for Childrens Literature, Thiruvananthapuram - Malayalam Eklavya, Bhopal - Hindi Navdanya, New Delhi - Hindi Jyotsna Prakashan, Mumbai - Marathi Bharathi Puthakalayam - Tamil Soma Books, UK European, African and Asian languages Parrots Books, USA - Hindi Raji Publications, Singapore - Tamil Kaka has also been busy visiting countries far and wide launching our books in new editions as foreign rights were picked up: UK USA Korea Germany France Taiwan Pakistan Bangladesh USA Canada

in many avatars . . .
Although the Tulika kakas only magic wand is the quill, different organisations with their special skills and expertise are transforming the books into much, much more Ebooks Fliplog Digital apps Emantras Books+ products Mother Earth

 Audio Books Radio Mirchi Tactile books Chetna Trust Books in Braille Third Eye Charitable Trust Book-based teaching-learning activities Hippocampus Reading Foundation Storytelling performances connecting books and stories Vayu Naidu Storytelling Company, UK Children love kakas company in classrooms all over the country. Senior school My Vote Counts Middle school Bhopal Gas Tragedy One World Classes Suresh and the Sea Hina in the Old City Upper primary Sorry Best Friend Aditi and the One-eyed Monkey Forbidden Temple Andamans Boy Read and Colour Freedom Stories and River Stories Ordinary Mr Pai All Free Mazzoo Mazzoo All About Nothing Kolaba Basava and the Dots of Fire (English), Basava aur Aag ke Bindu (Hindi) Pavo and Cavo Busy Busy Grand Ant Lower primary Sunu-Sunu Snail Storm in the Garden Look, the Moon Grandmas Eyes Who am I? Line and Circle Teacher resource The World of Indian Stories: a teaching resource of folktales from every state The World of Asian Stories: a teaching resource Ajoba

flying high . . .
And now kaka takes a bow. Read on.

Water Stories from Around the World Winner of the Federation of Indian Publishers (FIP) award for excellence in book production 2010 Just a Train Ride Away by Mini Srinivasan Winner of the first Bal Sahitya Puraskar for a childrens book in English 2010 A Silly Story of Bondapalli text Shamim Padamsee pictures Ashok Rajagopalan Selected by AWIC India as Outstanding Picture Book, Nambook Korea 2010 What Shall I Make? text Nandini Nayar pictures Proiti Roy Outstanding International Book 2010 selected by the United States Board for Books for Young People (USBBY) My Mothers Sari written by Sandhya Rao pictures Nina Sabnani Outstanding International Book, 2007 selected by the United States Board for Books for Young People (USBBY) and the Childrens Book Council The Seed text and pictures Deepa Balsavar Outstanding International Book for children selected for The White Ravens 2007 My Friend, the Sea by Sandhya Rao Winner of Ambitious Childrens Book Project award at the Berlin Children and Youth Literature Festival 2005 And Land Was Born & Yaar Adutha Ningthou? (Tamil translation of Who Will Be Ningthou?) Award for Excellence in Publishing from the Federation of Indian Publishers, 2000 AWIC/Indian BBY award in recognition of Tulikas impressive and significant contribution as a publisher of childrens books 2007. Uttam Bal Sahitya award from Tamilnadu Hindi Academy to Tulika in 2007 Certificate of Recognition and Appreciation received from the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair 2007 Certificate of Appreciation to Tulika Publishers from the Center for South Asia, University of Wisconsin Madison for valuable contributions to the Summer 2003 Fulbright Hays Group Project Abroad Curriculum Development Project, 2003

looking ahead . . .
2011 promises to be yet another exciting year, choc-a-bloc with new books brimming with new ideas and imagination. Kaka is on a creative high! In Bon Bibis Forest by Sandhya Rao, illustrated by Proiti Roy The story of Sundarban where the Ganga pours into the sea and where tigers roams alongside humans and honeybees gather on trees and everyone must live together if they are to survive. The story of why someone tells them how. In the series Our Myths, in nine languages. The Kite Tree by Avanti Mehta, illustrated by Nina Sabnani and Kalyan Joshi A poetic journey to the top of a hill as the seasons change and a beautiful tree beckons as it grows from being brown and bare to bursting with rainbow colours. The pictures

marry the real with the imagined mimicking the engaging interplay of stillness and movement in Nature. In nine languages. India Through Festivals The much loved Celebrate India - Tulika Diary of Days, Dates and Festivals in a new avatar as a book for keeps for all ages with all you ever wanted to know about how India is such a mish of mash. Science Concept Books Air. Water. Soil. And more. Basic science. Basically. Visually. And fun, happily.

and afar . . .
. . . Inspired and energised as we create that valuable and level cultural space in which every child can read, imagine, learn, question.

Aluguti Toluguti (Olouguti Toluguti) Move over, Mary, here come Dampadam pappadam and Khabadak khabadak ghodoba. Aluguti Toluguti is a collection of childrens rhymes in different Indian languages, in the original as well as reinvented in a lively, recitable English translation. Our intern from Pune, Kshitiz, has been having a khabadak time doing the pictures. The Enchanted Saarang by Asha Hanley, illustrated by Proiti Roy An evocative collection of stories, enchantingly illustrated. Asha brings to every corner of every readers heart the deepest, most hidden creatures and feelings from a little represented region in childrens books: Kashmir. The Mystery of Blue by Muriel Kakani, illustrated by Boski Jain The Ilkal fabrics shine yellow, red, orange, green.... but blue, ah, the multi-hued blue now that is elusive. This picture book tells how the mysterious blue was found and

recreated on cloth, thanks to an intrepid little girl and her pigeon friend, Chandrakali. In nine languages. Beyond the Blue River by Vinayan Bhaskaran A fantasy novel to challenge all: the adventures of an auto with a mind of her own and dreams that she dares to follow in this world, and worlds within and far beyond. A bold, fresh, new voice on the literary scene. Mayil Will Not Be Quiet by Niveditha Subramaniam and Sowmya Rajendran An engaging, amusing, provocative journey into the mind of a 12 going on 13 year old girl who wants to know why why why... Questions, confusions and reflections of one who wants to become a writer, from two wonderfully talented young authors. Stone Eggs: The Story of Indian Dinosaurs by Helen Rundgren, illustrated by Soumya Menon Shankar thought dinosaurs roamed about only in faraway America... until he and sister stumble upon some beautiful round stone eggs in their grandmothers village. A unique book with lots of information on Indian dinosaurs for the first time. Stitching Stories by Nina Sabnani and the artists of Kala Raksha The Looking at Art series takes a fresh turn by focusing on inherited craft as personalised art. Based on Nina Sabnanis award-winning film Tanko Bole Chhe (The Stitches Speak), this gorgeously visual book looks at embroidery in Gujarat, particularly the evolution of narrative art through stitches. Travel Puzzle Book & Game by Manjula Padmanabhan The World Tour Mystery Yet another stroke of genius from Manjula! This time she takes children on a trip around the world. She teases them, she pleases them, and then she tells them where theyre going and what theyre seeing. Book complete with game to play. She rules! Black Panther by Arvind Krish Bala, illustrated by Ashok Rajagopalan Our very own illustrator is back at his best as he takes us through the Anaimalais with first-time author Arvind, a journalist whose heart beats for wildlife. A moving story about a seldom seen animal, shared with soul and simplicity. In nine languages.