Wonder in the books

"My mother knows the most,” believe young children but few like Zarir and Ayesha could claim "My mother writes the most.” Their mother Meher Marfatia is the author of eight books for children. Parsiana interviewed her on the release of her seventh publication My Amazing India Daybook in early 2004. Even before the article could be carried, we were privileged to see her eighth work Wonder in the Woods. "Along with my mainstream writing (in the national media) I average about two books a year,” mentions Marfatia.

The source of her inspiration? "No inspiration; necessi­ty,” declares the author. When selecting books with Indian sub­jects and themes for her young children she found that "where the visuals were exciting the text was shoddy, and where the text was interesting the visuals were sub-substandard...They were boring to look at.” To fill the lacuna she used her free time and years of experience as a journalist to team up with publishers who had the child-reader in mind.

For each of her books she feels obligated to do research and present the most authentic information. Marfatia pointed out how certain texts are still confused whether Delhi is a state or a union territory, how the boundaries of Jharkhand and Bihar, as also Uttar Pradesh and Uttaranchal are still blurred for certain periodicals. Considering that many people think that "once it is in print it is sacred,” she finds it scary to see the spread of such rampant misinformation.

In her books like My Jungle Adventure or My Amazing India Daybook, Marfatia presents tidbits of information to the young reader in small doses which are easy to comprehend and digest. "The pages of My Amazing India Daybook are packed with fun facts about our beautiful country. Spend every one of the 365 days ahead with really unusual little nuggets of information which will open up whole new worlds of knowledge,” notes the introduc­tion. Besides the child reader, many an adult too would benefit from the facts on the bottom of each page such as: Cuttack in Orissa still operates a carrier pigeon system to deliver messag­es... every frantically buzzing bee produces just one teaspoon of honey in its lifetime... the Marina in Madras is the second longest beach in the world... snowflakes are six-sided wonders, no two will ever have the same pattern... the presence of a colony of termites indicates that an underground source of water lies nearby...

The information is logically presented in such a way that each month focuses on a special feature, whether it is the coun­try’s picturesque landscapes, historical references to royalty, the freedom struggle, wildlife, travel destinations, monuments, games and pastimes, science and inventions, arts and crafts, religion and festivities. The illustrator-designer of the book Ayesha Soonawalla has given each theme its own distinctive color­ful border which is repeated over the pages of the relevant month. The 10 blank lines provided for each day leave the reader free to make his/her own notes. Thus for July which is devoted to "Faith matters” the asho farohar of the Zoroastrians shares space with visuals of Krishna, the Trimurti, Shiva’s trident, Buddha, the cross, lamp, moon and the star.

Soonawalla (left) and Marfatia

The reference to the Zoroastrians from Persia first landing on the shores of India is found in the book as also the fact that the fire at Iranshah has been burning continuously for centuries. Both Dada­bhai Naoroji and Madame Cama find a mention in the freedom struggle. The spring festival of Navroz, the contribution of the three Chhoi brothers who brought the Tanchhoi to India, the exquisite gara embroidery valued by the community are the other ways the Zoroastrians have been featured here. "We get the go-by all the time so I consciously make an attempt” to see that the community is not overlooked, reveals Marfatia. Published by Rupa and Company (7/16 Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi 110002), the paperback edition of the book is priced at Rs 295 and the hardcover edition at Rs 395. "It would prove the perfect present for Indian children living abroad,” believes Marfatia.

Yet another of her works due for release Mira says Na-maskar, Rajan says Vanna­akkam "is like a supplementary geography re­ference” without tiring the reader. In the doublespread devoted to each state of India a child from the area introduces the salient features of that region with appropriate visuals — it could be the food, the costume, the art, the monuments, wildlife... Here too she has brought in a Parsi, one Dina from Daman and Diu whose father owns a beach resort in Devka.

Some titles pubished by Tata Infomedia Press

Marfatia’s first attempt at fiction, Wonder in the Woods, due for imminent release has been jointly published by Rupa and Compa­ny and the Soonabai Pirojsha Godrej Foundation thanks to the recommendation of environmentalist Pheroza Godrej. In the 25-page hardcover book priced at Rs 95, Marfatia relates nine-year-old Madhvi’s fondness for the woods and her attempts to save her favorite mango tree from the woodcutter’s axe. Ultimately the woodcutter acknowledges, "You are a brave girl and have worked hard for what you believe in. It’s right to think that you don’t always have to be a grown-up to make a difference to things around you. Every small action counts and it all adds up.”

Marfatia’s first four books Forward Counting with Santa, Backward Counting with Ganesha, My Book of Everyday Friends and Helpers and My Jungle Adventure were published by Tata Infomedia Press. For BPI Publication she brought out the Millen­nium Daybook and for Mid-Day Multimedia she worked on Little Mumbai where she explored the infinite opportunities the city offers to its young. The fact that Little Mumbai reached the India Today bestseller list (she is now working on bringing out a revised edition) and that My Jungle Adventure was bought by Air-India to present to its business class kids have convinced Marfa­tia that her energies are well spent.

"It’s a myth that kids today are not reading,” asserts the author who is able to relate well with the young and is close to children’s conversations. She particularly enjoys writing for "kids who are so painfully honest. They don’t believe in faking...I don’t think I’ll write for adults for which you re­quire undisturbed time.” The instant feedback from her 11-year-old son Zarir who is in Std VI at St Mary’s School and seven-year-old daughter Ayesha who is in Std II at J. B. Petit School also helps Marfatia assess her strengths and weaknesses. But most of all they are interested in ensuring that every book of hers is dedicated to them and getting her to name some charac­ters in the book after their close friends in school.

Three years ago when Little Mumbai was just out, Zarir from his school bus instructed one of the boys who come selling books at traffic signals to put an international bestseller’s work below his mother’s because he wanted his "mummy ki book oopar (mummy’s book at the top),” Marfatia relives her elation when her children take pride in her books although they may not read her articles written in the general media.

From left: Meher, Zarir, Ayesha and NoshirMarfatia

Until recently Marfatia used to write the weekly Kid-Day column for the Mid-Day whilst occasionally accepting freelance assignments from the Taj magazine, Verve, Voyage, Parsiana, Human-scape, Marwar and Elle Decor. She started her career as an assis­tant editor with The Illustrated Weekly of India. For a while she was copy editor for Verve, Marg and the Art India magazine.

An alumnus of Bombay’s St Joseph’s Convent, Marfatia completed her graduation from St Xavier’s College and postgradua­tion in English literature from the Bombay University, attending classes at Elphinstone College. She pursu­ed her journalism studies in Berlin. Daughter of Homai and Homi Dastoor, she gives her father credit for being blessed "with a very fine pen.” Her husband Noshir is vice president (sales and marketing) of Sarovar Park Plaza Hotels and Resorts.

Proud as she is of her community, Marfatia opines, "With notable exceptions I think our generation is not doing enough, preferring to be laid back and basking in past glory. Women though are doing better than men.” Reluctant to comment on con­troversial issues dogging the community her rationale is simple, "If we bemoan the fact that we are a dwindling community we shouldn’t be rigid about accepting children of interfaith mar­riages. We then have only ourselves to blame.” To her what is more important is that "traits like honor, honesty, punctuality...will continue” to be synonymous with the community.