CHILDREN'S LITERATURE FESTIVAL: BOOK TRAILS

Chinmay Patgaonkar is a fourteen-year-old student studying at Indus International School. His first novel The Last 21 Hours A Bullet That Shook the White House is a thriller. Chinmay likes listening to music, writing, reading, watching movies and is a massive sports fan. He is also an avid traveler and enjoys road journeys. Above all he loves meeting people and exchange stories. He currently lives in Pune with his parents, a sister, and a dog. He also has a blog called ‘Stories, You & Me’.

Shaguna Gahilote is a performance storyteller. She is a maths wizard with a double master’s degree, having studied in both India and the UK, where she was a Commonwealth Scholar. She came back to India to work on conserving rare and dying folk art forms. She has worked as an education, peace and culture specialist and helms Ghummakkad Narain: The Travelling Literature Festival and Kathakar: International Storytellers Festival, now in its tenth edition.
Shaguna spends her days writing, drawing cartoons, solving maths problems with her nephew and looking after her pet Labrador, Ginger, as well as her neighbourhood strays. She has trotted around the world on a staple diet of potatoes, eggs and hummus.

Prarthana Gahilote has been a journalist with the national media-spanning print, TV and digital platforms-for over two decades, with a stint in the UK as a Chevening Scholar. She is the festival director of Kathakar: International Storytellers Festival, India’s first and only oral storytelling festival. Prarthana suffers from wanderlust and loves walking the Himalayan forests whenever she can escape her homes in Delhi or Mumbai. When not occupied with the alphabet, she is found spinning yarns with family and friends, pampering her nephew, Raghav, and her pet, Ginger. She has an ever-growing collection of books, fountain pens and antiques. She directs short films, documentaries and digital concerts. She also writes poetry in Hindustani as well as lyrics for songs. She can’t live without music or gulab jamuns.

Adi is a lawyer working at the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy, where he advises the Central Government, State Governments, and the judiciary on various matters concerning law and policy. He is also a blogger. The aim of his blog is to document his weekends sojourn across the seven cities of Delhi, blogging as he goes. His formula is not to narrate history, but to tempt you to visit the spots, look around, and discover the history for yourself. He says, 'Delhi is a beautiful place. As you stroll through a posh suburb, you may stumble across a 14th century palace frequented by Ibn Battuta. As you drive down a wide boulevard, you may spot a great Mughal spymaster’s unfinished tomb. If you know where to look, Delhi is bound to awaken within you the urge to record your experiences through prose, poetry, or photos.'

Shrayana Bhattacharya trained in development economics at Delhi University and Harvard University. Since 2014, in her role as an economist at a multilateral development bank, she has focused on issues related to social policy and jobs. Prior to this, she worked on research projects with the Centre for Policy Research, SEWA Union and Institute of Social Studies Trust. Her writing has appeared in the Indian Express, EPW, Indian Quarterly and The Caravan. She lives in New Delhi.

Neil Jarial, is an author and the founder of The Magic of Books, a leading storytelling club for young kids, empowering young children to read, learn and grow. Ms Jarial has experience of more than 5 years as a storyteller and is popularly known as Aunty Neil to the young ones.

Through Fiction-Ally, Nayra hopes to share her love for literature with young students like her, engage them in creatively thinking about the world around them and bring to light important issues to encourage collective action.
Nayra Kohli is a student at the Wellington College, in the UK. Throughout her childhood and schooling, she has been extremely moved and influenced by artform and literature. This pushed her to take up playing the piano (for which she is currently training to take her Trinity Grade 8 exams) and pursue drama both academically and on stage. Through her involvement with the performing arts, Nayra became deeply aware of the representation of social issues through performance, and it’s positive impact on advocacy and creating awareness. Nayra is especially passionate about fighting for gender equality, and using writing as a tool to explore and share diverse experiences and stories.