When Dr. Raza H. Tehsin and his daughter, writer Arefa Tehsin decided to collaborate on a book, they knew it would have to be one that celebrated nature and the animals they so loved. Arefa will tell you that she loves playing with snakes,
exploring unknown caves and
treading the jungles alone at night as much as penning down words.
She inherited her love of nature from her father – Dr. Raza is
sometimes called the ‘Vasco de Gama of the Mewar jungles,’ and he’s very well known for his work in wildlife conservation particularly in Rajasthan, North India.
Together the father-daughter duo have put together a new collection of short stories they call ‘Tales from the Wild.’ The prime focus of these stories is on the thrills, delights, life cycles and conservation of the wild.
This week, the Funday Times
catches up with Arefa. Here’s what she had to say:
What binds all the stories in
'Tales from the Wild' together?
 |
 |
| Dr. Raza |
Arefa |
The common factor that binds all the stories is the love for Nature. The stories are a journey into the animal world, to educate and
entertain children about wildlife and Nature facts through stories and, as Dr. Raza says, to
understand that we don’t have to preserve Nature, but respect it,
as it is Nature who is preserving us.
Who are some of the characters we meet?
The tree in 'The Flying Lamps' may be the one on the outskirt of your city, the boy in 'My Encounter with a Survivor' may be the one whose father has just been
transferred from Badulla to Colombo. All the characters are in the cities and forests around us.
Where are the stories drawn from?
The stories are drawn from real life coupled with imagination.
Some stories are fantasy, some
mythology, some adventure and yet others fables. The underlying
factors in all of them are the real life issues today that the wild animals and forests are facing, the
man animal conflict and the
portrayal of animal life cycles and scientific facts related to them.
Why did you and Dr. Raza decide to collaborate on this project?
My father Dr. Raza has had this idea of educating children through stories about Nature and Wildlife since long. Writing and jungles are the love of my life. After penning down 'Iora and the Quest of Five', the first novel of older children’s fantasy series based in a rainforest, I decided to give shape to Dr. Raza’s idea of this book. We plan to write a series of such books so that we can encompass more animals in it. It took us a month to complete this book.
Did you grow up listening to some of these stories?
No, I didn’t grow up listening to these stories; they were written
by us when we wrote the book.
But I’ve grown up treading jungles,
exploring caves, playing with snakes, befriending leopards, bears and other animals by going in their cages and listening to the stories of my father’s jungle adventures.
My family has had a long standing
association with
forests. I have a deep love for jungles due to my father, fondly known as Vasco de Gama of Mewar
jungles, and
my grandfather
T. H. Tehsin, one of
the earliest big game
hunter's turned
conservationist's of India.
Why is it so
important that
children living in urban landscapes reconnect with nature?
Chasing butterflies, climbing trees and
bee-stings were a part of our
childhood plays. But today the
children are growing with a total disconnect withn Nature. This not only takes them away from Nature, which is an integral part of our lives, but also hampers their
all-inclusive growth.
Author Jerry Mander wrote something to this effect that after sometime, when you ask a child “Where do oranges grow?” he’ll
reply, “In the Supermarket.”
Our modern
education system is doing precious little to bring them closer to Nature. This book is a humble attempt in that direction.
Competition
Enter the competition and win a copy of 'Tales from the Wild' and a
Funday Times T-shirt.
Write a story (400 – 500 words) based on one of the two given story lines. It should be interesting and written on the lines of nature and conservation. The story should also be your own original composition.
Please have your entry certified by a teacher or parent as your own work.
Story 1
Tiya & the Serpent
While going back through the forest track, to her home in the village, Tiya drops her
yellow ribbon in the grass. It is late evening.
Story 2
Queen of Bhomat
The Queen, the last tigress of Bhomat
forest, takes her cubs Stripes and Snarls to the prey she’d hunted the night before. |
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