“Even though Kirtipur municipality is home to the biggest university of our nation, from what we’ve seen so far, the reading culture here is very underdeveloped,” says Shankar Bhandari, an English teacher at Creative Academy. He further adds that currently, he believes, liquor stores, bars and nightclubs are places that more popular than bookstores and libraries in the municipality. It is to change this and to popularize reading culture among children and young students that Creative Academy took to hosting the Children’s Literature Festival. And this year marks the second edition of the event.
Bhandari mentions that the first edition of the event was attended by over 600 people and he adds that the organizers are hoping for a footfall of over 8000 people this year. Although a lot of the participants and regulators of activities are students from Creative Academy, Bhandari states that schools from all over the country – especially the ones within the Kirtipur municipality – had been invited to participate at this event.
Events and happenings of the festival
Bhandari mentions that the highlight of the event is the various talk shows and panel discussions that will be hosted throughout the day with different guests. The guests featured in these talk shows and panel discussions include Nikita Chandak, Shanta Dahal, Pawan Singh Karki, Asim Sagar, Nabin Pyasi, Neer Shah, Dayahang Rai, Bipin Karki, Prajjwal Adhikari, Nayan Raj Pandey, Prof. Dr. Dharmaraj Dangol, and Chetan Nath Kandel among others. Historian Satya Mohan Joshi is also being honored for his contribution in the field of history and culture of Nepal.
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Besides that, there are various other activities happening at the event like workshops for illustrations, blogging, clowning and calligraphy, art and book exhibition, magic show, puppet show, mime show, book signings, cultural show, poetry recitations, story writing, and essay writing programs. While a few of these activities have a set time, most of them run throughout the day.
According to Bhandari, there have been a few changes in the activity lineup as compared to last year. A few activities like the mime and puppet show that weren’t there last year have been added to the lineup. He also reveals that, this year, a few students (from Creative Academy) will be dressed up as famous literary figures like Parijat, Bhanubhakta Acharya and Laxmi Prasad Devkota and will greet people as they enter through the gates of the school. He further states that, unlike last year, many of the activities and programs have been put together by the students themselves.
“We (the organizing committee) have also realized that a lot of young people can’t recognize common household items like ‘jaato’ that people (especially from villages) used a few years back and are conducting a small showcase of sorts of these items,” says Bhandari. Additionally, some students will also be interviewing elderly guests and event attendees about their daily lives and will be documenting all of that for future research.
About the organizers
Creative Academy is a non-profit private educational institute that was established in 2004. Bhandari mentions that the school has always emphasized the importance of extra curricular activities alongside traditional education for the overall development of students.
“One of the main reasons behind us conducting this literary festival is make the prospect of reading and learning exciting for students. Some of our students have been preparing (to participate in) for this event since the beginning of the school year,” he says adding that he has actually seen visible results in the way Creative Academy students treat reading and literature since last year’s festival.
Beside Creative Academy, the other organizers of this event include Kirtipur Municipality, Kathalaya, Shilpee Theater, and Bal Kala Sangrahalaya.
What: Kirtipur Bal Sahitya Mahotsav
Where: Creative Academy, Naya Bazaar, Kirtipur
When: March 2, 2019, 10am – 5pm
Entry: Free
