CAC @Bhoomi Santhe

Lush greenery for all the senses - that's Bhoomi Santhe!  

On entering the Bhoomi Network/College/Prakriya campus, there's a sudden pause - the sound of birds, a glimpse of the organic farming practices, drinking water stored in earthen/metal pots, traditional structures that require no additional lighting or cooling... - a perfect pause in an urban setup. Adding to this is an organic produce market, directly from the Bhoomi farms and the "tindi" area offering local delicacies from the Bhoomi Kitchen!

A pathway in the santhe

Nested in this setting, is another beautiful pathway to the workshop hall...

All set for the "Community Art Circle" (CAC) workshop!

CAC Poster

Workshops for the day

The workshop space proved to be a sensory treat! A spacious hall with natural ventilation, cool breeze, clean air and birds chirping on the trees, just a few feet away from the window. The traditional floor seating set the stage! A perfect setup for imaginative art and stories in a community!

Forming the "Circle"!

The room buzzed with sounds of surprising questions, answers, prompts, drawings, coloring, stories - all out of the box! The art extempore left me speechless. The interest in sustainability practices in art impressed me - fabric scraps in a crochet creation, dual-side paper use, recycling - this audience knew it all!

The kids once again, demonstrated that imagination does wonders to all. It takes you out of the box. And once you are out of the box, there are no boundaries or rules. The mind is set free for expression! All this in a community setting, through stories and art! 

band of beads is thankful to Bhoomi for being a great host. A special mention of all the participating kids and their parents for being a part of the CAC. A treat for sure!

Bhoomi Santhe continues to be a space where local farmers, artisans, and vendors can showcase their products and connect with the community. - Email flyer by Bhoomi Network

Makkala Hubba

"Makkala" - a Kannada word, roughly meaning "for the children".

Makkala Hubba, a sub festival of the city-wide celebration, BLR Hubba; was hosted at the venue, Freedom Park. A hospital block in the freedom struggle-era jail premises, was transformed into an imagination escape for kids! The various exhibits provided education and fun - both at the same time! A few of them include ... the glowing Phytoplankton world, draw your city, minimal surfaces in motion, kere party, follow the butterflies... and the mega-size board game, which explored the various cuisines of Karnataka!

I had the privilege to mediate the idea of the mega board game to the kids. The huge scale of the game - especially the dice; and the goodies on finishing the game, struck the chord! Culinary knowledge - Ingredients, recipes and utensils - explored through play - what a sight! The sticker book - for the various dishes on the map of Karnataka - was everyone's favorite! Sensory MasterChef-like challenges added a twist to the game! Children had a fun coloring zone as well! Aah... even adults wished to be a kid!

It was an absolute pleasure to be among kids from various backgrounds and get a peek in their world of imagination. The "6-7" excitement and their presence of mind in various recipes and ingredients - "red chilli" in Kannada as "Kempu Menasinekai" for the famous GI tagged Byadagi Chilli - was contagious!

I also met some attendees of my puppet show sessions, who instantly recognized me, despite a new setup - "Hey... we saw you host the Panchatantra Story puppet show session! We did a craft... when are you coming back?" Also got a chance to meet distinguished people - creators of the festival - who saw it all come to life.

A refreshing twist to play in an urban setup - little smiles and excitement in the air! band of beads is thankful to BLR Hubba-Makkala Hubba, Bachpan Manao and Nivaala for providing this opportunity. Hope to see you soon!

Mediating at Makkala Hubba

Rasthe Hubba

Respect for fine art - something which is quite rare...

Not in Banaswadi, Bengaluru!

band of beads had the privilege to exhibit the handcrafted theme bead products for sale at Banaswadi Rasthe Hubba. A sub-festival of the city wide celebration - BLR Hubba, Rasthe Hubba brought a community feeling on the streets of various neighbourhoods of Bengaluru - Koramangala, Sanjay Nagara, Pandura Nagara, Malleshwaram, Basawanagudi, Banaswadi - to name a few. Supported by the Government of Karnataka and Bangalore Expo, this event was a great effort to bring everyone together.

Social Media Flyer

With a huge crowd of warm people, stage performances, games, beautiful rangolis and a flea market offering local produce, this hubba was nothing short of a perfect Sunday outing. Banaswadi was a region unexplored by band of beads. But, our guests welcomed us with great respect for handmade, noticing every detail - applique banner, corrugated paper visiting cards, "handmade at home" products and even newspaper carry bags! Your interest in handmade was evident right from the setup till the time we wrapped up the stall! This is what keeps us going!

band of beads is grateful to each and every guest, performer and the organizers of this event. Hoping to see you again! 

Christmas flea market @ Skadoosh, Varthur

A huge Christmas tree, a snowman and a reindeer in a snow-clad setting - a perfect visual treat on the day of Christmas! But this wonderland had a twist! You could actually go inside this Christmas tree with a lot of gifts!!!

The perfect Christmas treat!

Adding to this decor was a flea market set around, to make the perfect "fringe"! With a creations from heart, each vendor had something special to offer. The best part, there were different stories behind each creator! A wonderful company to be in.

setting up!

band of beads is thankful to Skadoosh, Varthur for providing this perfect setting on a festive day. A special mention of all our guests to stop by and take home a story. And not to forget, the wonderful stall companions for the whole day - partners in creativity!

Looking for more!

Welcome our dear friends - Lion & Mouse!

Love for beads.

Love for fabric.

Love for stories.

Love for children. 

Wait... what was the first love?!

A hard choice, indeed! 

Bead weaving and fabrics share a similar story - weaving. Well, isn't a story also about weaving plots, characters and emotions?! Understood the best by kids (or maybe a kid at heart)!

After a wonderful response by the audiences and the warm hosting by performance art venues, the thirsty crow saw it all! "Caw-caws", laughs, songs, amusement, a bit of a surprise and a lesson for a lifetime! I couldn't ask for more! "Hello, Thirsty Crow" has a memory bank for sure!

The bird world is definitely worth an explore! What about the animal world? Well, its time we visit it too!

Here's a scripted, interactive puppet show inspired by another Panchatantra Story, "The Lion and the Mouse". With a cast of handmade puppets and backgrounds (by band of beads), this show is freshly packed with songs, edutainment and a moral for a lifetime!

I welcome all performance venues, libraries, NGOs, corporates and schools for a ride exclusively for kids!

Let us re-live the nostalgia and pass it on!

Bookings open!

contact.bandofbeads@gmail.com

Hello, Thirsty Crow @Sabha

A timeless, majestic venue. A modern vibe. That's SabhaBlr.

An imaginary music filled my ears as my daughter and I landed here on the early Sunday morning. Felt like the time clock was wound a few years back, but the essence was still relevant to the current. The child artist in me was at home!

We assembled our DIY stage - made of connectors, rods and curtains to give a child-friendly look. The artwork on the stage was inspired by what a small kid would do - clouds with cotton, bushes made by paper fans, a tree made with a roll and the fabric stage background created by band of beads. The support staff did their best to keep the place spotless and in order. A perfect team-work for the prep time.

The DIY Setup

We could hear the giggle of our first guest as we got ready to welcome. And the giggles doubled, quadrupled and so on! Thanks to our ticketing partner, Urbanaut. Seamless booking experience for curated shows - both for the host and guest.

Our handmade puppet (with a special fabric, cut and stitched together) was ready to perform! The Thirsty Crow had a great crowd - the kids were brilliant participants for the prompts, song chorus and also, some wonderful dancers! For the ones seated, you could see the swaying legs to the music beats! Children express through acts - sometimes never heard! This is so inspiring!

The room was soon filled with the sounds of the crow! Kids were in the wonderland!

Grooving with the crow!

The art activity was full of inquisitive eyes - how can a paper turn into a puppet? The beauty of this craft medium is that it is available wherever you go - and the magic to give it a beautiful form is in your hands! A great learning to pass on!

After a while, each kid had their own puppet to play with! What followed was an activity with another adorable craft material - the humble cotton! Tiny palms gave a shape - another toy was born!

The two toys were made to be in sync and the loop was set for another story telling session - now by the kids!

Art. Story. Repeat! - Traditional Virtual Reality!

The Thirsty Crow had a great time landing at Sabha - all scheduled by Urbanaut! band of beads is thankful to them for being a wonderful team! 

Let us keep the loop going!

Event details at:

https://www.sabhablr.in/event-details/hello-thirsty-crow

Promotions:

https://www.cntraveller.in/story/cnt-culture-calendar-what-to-do-across-india-this-july/

https://blog.urbanaut.app/planning-a-weekend-with-kids-try-these-family-friendly-activities-in-bangalore/