Dear friend,

Very often, chance conversations can lead up to meaningful ones that, in turn, lead to new connections and, in the end, a new project – sometimes all very suddenly. Bookaroo’s first edition in Vadodara was born out of two conversations – first with IGNCA (Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts) and then Alembic City

Bookaroo’s association with IGNCA goes back to 2010 and our annual meetings usually have a one-point agenda – to chalk out plans for the Delhi edition of India’s first children’s literature festival. Late last year, in the annual meeting, it emerged that Vadodara had just become one of IGNCA’s new regional centres. One idea led to another and it was decided that Bookaroo must have an edition in Vadodara. IGNCA Regional Centre Vadodara joined hands in this collaborative effort to take the festival to the city, thanks to member secretary

Dr Sachchidanand Joshi’s encouragement and support. Baroda is the third of Bookaroo’s three collaborations with IGNCA outside Delhi. The other two were Gangtok and Varanasi.

The second conversation happened on email just a couple of days before we left for Vadodara to conduct a recce for venues in the city. An exploratory mail that wanted to know if we would be interested in having a Bookaroo edition in Vadodara. It was from Krupa Amin, founder of the Art District, Alembic City.

She invited us over to take a look at the space. Fortunately, the recce did not turn into the long haul that it usually is. We immediately fell in love with the beautiful Space Studio set in the magnificent Art District in Alembic City. It was just the sort of place to kick off Bookaroo in a new city. What’s more exciting is that Space Studio is built from an Alembic factory which is over 100 years old.

This story will not be complete without a mention of Alembic Art District’s other founder, Udit Amin, who made the past-meets-present connect as seamless as it could have been, in just one meeting.

We won’t spoil it for you. Awaiting you is a treat when you come in on Nov 9th, explore the venue and the 57 sessions planned for you over the weekend.

Walk in and welcome a glittering line-up of authors, storytellers and illustrators.