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As you all may be aware, Chakmak is a children’s monthly magazine published by Eklavya regularly since 1985. It has a column named ‘Mera Panna’ (My pages) that carries stories, poems, articles and drawings by children. We can see the myriad abilities of children in this column, and children too can find themselves in these pages. This set of 8 cards is a selection from this vast treasure, and have been presented as one special card each.

Here’s another collection of poems by Nirankardev Sevak —poems that you will find many a child singing along while doing chores or playing with odds and ends in the rural stretches of north India. The poems have been read and sung since ages—in school, at home and out in the playgrounds with rhythm and joy. In today’s fast-moving times of modernity where even children are often closeted within four walls, poems like these bring back the fragrance of the soil.

Chal Mere Matke Tammak Tu is a folktale that Virendra Dubey has reconstructed for young readers. At some stage in our childhood, I am sure many of us might have heard the story, maybe different versions of it, from parents or grandparents. It is an interesting tale of how an old lady outwits the wild animals who want to eat her while she is crossing the forest to go and visit her daughter who lives in a far-off town.

The book Duniya Meri is an emotional journey of the love that a father and daughter cherish. A timeless tale that has been described with both words and illustrations, it aims to address how, for a father, the daughter is his world. It portrays how little things, little moments shared between them are everything that matters for their happiness.

Akeli Cheenti is a picture book exploring the journey of an ant, a bit different from what we have observed all ants doing.This ant is a rebellious one and wants to explore the world and so begins her lone journey where she experiences life threatening and dangerous ordeals. The sweet taste of freedom and new experiences start with the giving up of the temptation of her favourite food!

This is a short story by Subhadra Kumari Chauhan about the friendship between Afghan traders and the local buyers. This reminds us of ‘Kabuliwala’, a story by Rabindranath Tagore. In an era gone by individual traders from Afghanistan would come to India to sell their goods from house to house. In this case, it is heeng. These traders or hawkers miss their home and children, whom they had left behind.