Power of write action

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Paro Anand believes writing is a part of the healing process. During a creative writing workshop with a group of orphan children in the conflict-ridden Kashmir, her belief was reinforced. The author was surprised by their response, when she asked the kids to write a story.
“Many of them went blank. Some started fiddling with their pens, others got up and left and few just wouldn’t return from the washroom,” she says.
Finally, after much coaxing, each one of them did come out with that one ‘life-changing’ story. As expected, they all wrote about the loss of their fathers. “And while reading it out, they cried and sobbed. Everyone in the room was crying. I wasn’t sure if what we did was right. But then, what followed was a little miracle,” she narrates. The children felt so light and relieved after telling their story — it was like they had unburdened their baggage, she says.
“Thus, writing for them was a way of giving a vent to their subdued grief. Then they danced and sang and played games with lots and lots of laughter,” she smiles. “That’s the magic of writing,” she says.
The award-winning author and performance storyteller also believes that each one of us has a story to share. And any one can be a writer. With that mission and vision, she has been conducting writing workshops across the country.
While books for children and young adults has been Paro’s forte, with around 24 odd books to her credit, this time the 54-year-old wants to challenge herself in a different way. She is conducting a workshop for senior citizens, all above 60.
When we caught up with her during the warm-up workshop at India Habitat Centre (IHC) recently, she said, “All these people have seen life very closely. So, they are a storehouse of rich stories. It’s not just dada-dadi ki kahanian. Many of them have lived through Partition, and have many interesting anecdotes to share about it,” she shares.
“It’s a challenge for me as I am doing it for the first time for this age group, but am sure they will learn something in the process,” she says. The next open interaction for the workshop is scheduled on April 30, 6.30pm at IHC.
“Certainly the future belongs to the youth, but the foundation is laid on history. We will come out with some great stories from this group as we have spoken to a few publishers too,” she signs off.

The workshop is scheduled from
May 6 to 15 (Monday and Wednesday), 10 am – 1 pm.