by Disha Suresh, Grade 5, and Dayita Raju, Grade 10
At the Neev Literature Festival, Bijal Vachharajani spoke about her book, Left-Out Paru, illustrated by Rajiv Eipe, which explores the life of a left-handed girl who feels isolated in a world where most of those around her are right-handed. She began by asking the audience who is left handed and who is right handed. To help us step into Paru’s shoes, Bijal invited everyone to switch to their non-dominant hand to draw and even write. For a few minutes, we experienced the awkwardness and discomfort Paru herself felt, and saw how difference can so easily be pinpointed and become a source of exclusion.
A one-on-one interaction with the author also revealed how the story is an offshoot of her own experience, where her sister once found her in nursery, sobbing because a teacher had tied her left hand to a chair and forced her to write with her right. Paru is teased for her left-handedness and called names, and yet she slowly learns to embrace her identity.
Overall, this session provided everyone with insights into others struggles, and how we should always be fair, kind, and open-minded. Despite being a session mainly aimed at younger kids, this event had an impact on everybody in the audience, reflecting in the active participation and engagement. What we took away from the session is that the book is not only about Paru’s journey, but also about how we look at differences in our own contexts, and think about how we can create spaces where no one is made to feel like an outsider for being different.
