A large number of parents along with their children thronged the Gurgaon Children’s Literature Festival on its concluding day here on Sunday. The main attractions included storytelling sessions, puppet shows, writing workshop, panel discussions, and workshops for parents.

Held on the premises of Vega School, the two-day was open to children aged 5-12 years and was inaugurated by its co-founder Sandy Hooda.

The festival aimed at exploring the creativity of students so as to develop their interest in reading.

“Organising festivals to instil a love and passion for literature among kids is a novel move. Hope it will be observed every year from now on,” said one of the parents, Chetna Bhola, visiting the festival.

Another parent, Nilima Narang, said the festival was a commendable attempt at popularising reading among kids in these times of Internet and television.

Mehul Berwal, a Class III student at Heritage School, said he enjoyed the storytelling session and the puppet show the most.

‘Reading builds empathy’

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Hooda said: “The festival aimed at making reading entertaining for children and encouraging parents to build a ‘reading’ relationship with their children. We strongly feel that books document the fall and rise of civilisation and have played an important role in shaping the world. Reading a beautiful story has the power to transport us to other worlds.”

According to a study, getting lost in a good work of fiction can help build empathy and allows the reader to build desirable personality traits by learning from experience documented in books, Mr. Hooda said.

Some of the authors present at the festival included Benita Sen, Himanjali Sankar, Payal Dhar, Yashodhara Lal and Haimanti Mitra.

Among the illustrators and storytellers who attended the event were Arunima Shekhar, Dr. Tanu Shree Singh, Sreedevi Gopakumar, Kamal Pruthi and Yuveka Singh.

Tackling imagination

Elaborating on the purpose of holding children-centric literature fests, Harleen Mohanty, Head, Vega School, said: “There is a basic difference between literature festivals for adults and children. For adults, panel discussions and contours of literature set the tune, whereas for children one needs to convey everything in a storytelling manner. A habit of reading informs children of universal morality and gives them space to imagine.

She added: “This festival is a small movement to spread awareness in Gurugram about reading good literature.”