Mugdha Sethi is a graphic designer. Way back in 1997, she was Tulika's first student intern from NID, Ahmedabad. She illustrated four folk tales as part of her diploma project, using four different artistic traditions in Hiss, Don’t Bite! (Kalighat paintings), Eyes on the Peacock’s Tail (Phad paintings), Magic Vessels (clay sculptures from Tamilnadu) and A Curly Tale (Madhubani paintings). Her pictures for Little Fingers add to the playful quality of the verse. Common themes that run through her work have to do with colour, nature, the earth and growing things.
Each finger has its own personality, and when ten little fingers come together, they make things happen. Playful verse draws children into a game of all that their busy fingers can do, while bright pictures imaginatively capture the energy of their busy, busy lives.
Kalia, a poor cobbler, lives with his wife in Patna. He makes beautiful shoes with fine curling points. One day, tired of being poor, he seeks the help of a holy man who appoints him a ghost, Bhootram, who will earn Kalia a lot of money. The only problem is that Bhootram must always be kept busy – or he will eat them up! What will they do? The...
The children of a village take the cows to graze in a forest, where they love to play under a large, shady banyan tree. One day, a bad-tempered snake who lives under the tree bites a cow, and the children become afraid. The snake too is unhappy — until he learns the secret of life from a wandering monk. The folktale from Bengal has pictures adapted from...
In the beginning, the peacock had no markings on its shimmering blue-green tail. The sun king's daughter sees this beautiful creature one day and falls in love. Much against her father's wishes, she marries the peacock. What happens then and how the peacock gets ‘eyes' on its tail is what this folktale from Rajasthan is all about. The bold, stylised...
Muthu, a poor playwright, his wife Chellam, and their six children live a hard life. Chellam cooks and cleans homes while Muthu writes plays and sometimes doesn't get paid. One day, Muthu goes in search of a job. He loses his way in the jungle and falls asleep under a tree. What happens then? Find out in this folktale from Tamil Nadu, with pictures in the...
