The slight nip in the air, the smell of silver oaks in the evening, sunshine that feels warm on the skin, and the smell of yummy treats being readied in the kitchen for festivals…the onset of winters in India marks the start of the Navratris – the nine day festival dedicated to the Goddess Durga. Celebrated all around India – as Dasara in the south, Navratras in the north, Pujo in the east and Dusshera in the west, the festivities continue for nine days of Durga Puja, culminating on Vijayadashami with the burning of Ravana to mark the victory of Lord Rama over evil Ravana. Soon after Dusshera follows Karvachauth, Ahoi Ashtami and then Diwali – the festival of lights.
Festivals in India are more than just a festival; they go hand in hand with stories, special decorations, new clothes, crafts and of course, a ton of savouries and treats. My Box Of Festivals is a commendable effort by a mother to bring all of these aspects of a festival closer home in a specially packaged kit. We spoke to its Founder, Alika Vyas. Here are a few excerpts.
Tell us about My Box Of Festivals
My Box Of Festivals is a sustainable, Indian brand of educational toys that is working towards empowering artisans and popularising Indian art forms through interactive learning boxes. We aim to make festivals more memorable for children by creating engaging learning around them using specially designed comprehensive books, interactive toys or craft and simple recipes. This box is ideal for age 4 onwards as it teaches the child all about why and how a particular festival is celebrated while having fun from a young age!
What influenced or motivated you to create this product?
This product is very close to me as it was born out of my personal need as a mother. Being a mom in the ‘screen age’ is really challenging especially when it comes to reducing the western influence on young minds and inculcating Indian values. Having grown up in a traditional family, I have a treasure-trove of unforgettable memories around festivals and I wanted my children to experience the same. Hence, the mom in me turned to an entrepreneur utilising all my years of marketing experience coupled with my creative instincts. My Box Of Festivals was conceived.
How have the stories in your life influenced the stories you have picked for My Box Of Festivals?
Epics such as the Ramayana are embedded in the Indian ethos and its teachings are imprinted in our subconscious minds. These often influences decision-making in our daily lives. We wanted to incorporate these lessons in children as well from a young age so that they develop a similar thinking process and know and understand Indian traditions.
Tell us more about your work with the artists and how their work is incorporated into the product. What influenced you to use these artists?
India is a land of so many distinct art forms like Madhubani, Gond Art, Bhiel art and countless more. Each art form has its own cultural significance and history. But gradually, these crafts are dying out with increased modernisation and industrialisation. My Box Of Festivals, aims to create a larger canvas for the artisans of India and help them expand their target base.
For our Diwali Box, we have created a beautiful retelling of Ramayana using Madhubani Paintings practiced in Mithila, Bihar. Madhubani paintings often have religious depictions from Ramayana, especially of Ram and Sita because Mithila is the birthplace of Sita.
‘Ramayana – The story of Diwali’ has been illustrated by 2013 National Award winning artist, Mr. Devendra Kumar Jha. He is from Jitwarpur, Mithila and has been practicing Madhubani art since three decades. Having learnt his art from his father and grandfather, he is the third generation artist in his family carrying on his family legacy.
Going forward, we plan to introduce more art forms to children through our boxes and keep supporting Indian artists in our small way.
What sets My Box Of Festivals apart from other similar product offerings?
We are unique because we have been conceived out of a need. As a mom, I was always looking to create an immersive festival experience for my children rather than a sole book or video. This box teaches them all about Diwali and Madhubani art form through a detailed book and also makes it memorable by playing the Q & A game around it. It also encourages family bonding over a simple recipe to make Diwali even sweeter! This makes it distinct compared to any other activity box in the market.
Watch the Festive Box in action below.
What were the challenges you have faced in this journey of creating My Box Of Festivals?
Year 2020 has been an arduous journey, where India (and also the world) has had to grapple with the raging Covid-19 pandemic. Thus, it was very challenging to create a new product from scratch, that too without any prior experience in product development. Having said that, we turned this weakness into our strength and collaborated with experts in their field like Harini Srinivasan for the retelling of Ramayana and Mr. Devendra Kumar for the Illustrations, India Craft Project for putting it together and finally all my creativity and experience in marketing.
Any particular incident/anecdote from the entire development process that you would like to share with readers?
Well, for me, the entire process from idea to finally creating a meaningful product has been an unforgettable journey. Having faced multiple challenges, overcoming them, working from home while managing online school for children, trying to figure paper GSM along with applying for GST, every step has been a learning I can never forget.
Any suggestions to our readers how they can help in keeping stories alive?
A child who reads will be an adult who thinks. We should inculcate reading habits in children from a young age to build their imagination and knowledge. We can do this by making the story-time memorable by enacting the stories or creating games around them like we did in our box. It can even be simple interactive DIY toys. This will certainly increase the engagement with the book and create lifelong learning.
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If you have a kid (4+) and want to celebrate the festivals in their true spirit, we recommend getting your own special Festival Box here.