Pratham Step is to fuel imaginations through BOOKS!

First and foremost,  The ‘Idea Caravan’ contest organized by Indiblogger is the best blogging contest organized so far. Franklin Templeton Investments partnered the TEDxGateway Mumbai in December 2012 to invest in ideas, vision and beliefs to make the best of today and tomorrow.

Great thoughts are actually the best investments. They reap in benefit not only for the individual but for the society as a whole.

It was a privilege to have an access to the videos. The talks are thought-provoking and  showcase some of the best ideas and actions put together. They are simply awesome and absolutely inspiring. Each one of them has a vision that is just so amazing. The imaginations, creations are impressive and even the oration was entertaining. It was a pleasure to watch and listen to people of all age groups talk about their creations for the betterment of others. Learnings, grit, determination, will power, knowledge and technology have been put to the best use. I must say there was much to learn from these videos and each one has something for us to take from it. Our fellow people have really done exemplary work and their vision, their thoughts and their contribution towards making the society a better place to live in deserves to be applauded and appreciated.

There is Ruma Roka who is doing extraordinary by helping the deaf, Cynthiya Koenig who empathized with the pain of women who carry water on their heads and cover kilometers everyday. Neil Harbisson who has designed an “artificial” eye. There is a wizkid who wants to revolutionize education by hacking and make the best use of time and effort and there is a research scholar who wants to put an end to cancer. Impressive is the work on Vedic mathematics by Gaurav Tekriwal and how can one forget the contribution done by for the minorities or the class who do not even an identification. Hats off to the great thoughts and the great work.

Lets talk about the videos and the one which echoes my vision and drive as well. When I talk ‘about me’, I tell people that I have a vision to spread the reading virus. So when its about a vision of ‘having a book for each child’, nothing like it to be a part of it. I am already doing my share by ensuring that I give my books to the needy.

Pratham books and vision

Books…Wings of fire…

Lets ponder and think about ideas and investments. How did the ideas take birth in the minds of people not so extra-ordinary and made them do out of the box… What gave them the confidence, the strength and the ability to capture their imaginations? We are all born with the generic blend of sensibilities and a perfect combination of senses but what actually makes us use them uniquely is our ability to think differently. How does the thought-process build in a child’s mind? It is through impressions and what makes them best… the people, surroundings but more than that its education, knowledge, creativity all fueled by learnings, vision imparted through books.

Rohini Nilekani is a founder and chairperson of Pratham books ( a non profit publishing house). So when Mrs. Nilekani talks about the mission of a book for every child, its a great vision. It is the drive which will give birth to great leaders and thinkers because a book has the power to bring the change. Once a child is introduced to a book, his or her mind is transported to anew world. There is a large number of underprivileged class who cannot provide for books for their children but their children have all rights to learn. Any child can become Abdul kalam. We just cannot deprive them of this. We have to nurture the talent. The joy of reading and learning has to be spread out. We need to share books and get it to the deserving ones. Each child has his own imaginative power, its gets exponentially expanded when they are exposed to books.

Books which bring us stories open the door to the unknown and let a child breathe a fresh gush of air. The same story makes different impressions on a growing child. The pictures and stories in the books give fuel for his imagination and wings to his thoughts. Stories from the world mold the child beautifully. 

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=BHqFGA78sEU]

Each child can be the next person standing at Franklin Templeton Investments and TEDxGateway and talking great. They may have great ideas but it all needs to be rightly shaped. Until comes access to the right books, the talent is being silently killed. One reads and imagines the unimaginable and brings forth something new. Until the children read, they will not know the difference between the right and wrong. Lets join hands with Pratham books to spread the joy of sharing books and making it reach to every child. Books and its  importance in the growth of a child’s mind or anyone’s needs to be acknowledged and spread all across.

Some of the milestones achieved by Pratham Books:

Pratham Books is
a brand of story books as Indian as the children who read them. As a not-for-profit publisher, their dream is to see a country where every child wants to read, is able to read, and has something good to read.

• Books are best available at the lowest prices…Story cards available at Rs.2 Poverty thrives in our country!
• 215 titles in English and 10 other Indian languages, makes it 11… Much needed when we have so many languages!
• Printed over 8.5 million books, over 10 million story cards and have a readership of nearly 25 million… Wow!
• They have made attempts to reach the last child by innovative methods and have used people from different professions to reach the inaccessible… Commendable it is!
• Giving flexibility to use the content and append it to make its useful for further use and distribution… Creative Commons licenses makes it possible!

 

CHILDREN WHO WANT TO READ

A novice mind and a pure heart,

Forlorn eyes and empty breaths,

Waiting for their shares of joy & delight,

A faithful friend that they do not have,

Their minds desire food,

Imaginations need wings and fuel,

Printed in black, on the pages white,

Encompassing stories not one but many,

Give them books,

To one, to all, to many and not few,

Those who are ready to taste, swallow and chew.

🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂 🙂

A poem dedicated to the children, future of India who wish to read. Lets share this zeal of making a change and living to Pratham’s vision.

Franklin Templeton Investments partnered the TEDxGateway Mumbai in December 2012.

Happy Reading!!!

Happy Sharing!!!

Happy Blogging!!!