How Walking BookFairs is Walking Books to Those Who Need Them The Most
By Sweta Mishra
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn the more places you'll go.” - Dr Seuss
What if I say that there's a pretty book truck with loads of words dancing between the pages and someone somewhere is driving it towards you? Sounds interesting? Doesn’t it? Books on wheels! Now, what if I tell you it's right here and is true?
Walking BookFairs, the brainchild of Odisha's Akshaya Rautaray and Satabdi Mishra is one such indie bookshop, winner of the prestigious 'Bookstore of the Year Award' at the Publishing Next 2016 Industry Awards in Kochi, Kerala. The importance of reading books and the fact that not everyone is privileged or monetarily able to have access to books, was the beginning of the idea - The Walking BookFairs for Akshaya and Satabdi. Back in 2013 when Akshaya and Satabdi were living in Koraput district of Odisha, they became aware that children did not have access to the most basic source of knowledge - books. Their journey so far has been a tiny effort to change this situation. They wish to make books available to as many people as possible, which they do through their traveling bookstore/library and by giving out big discounts on all books at their bookshop all 365 days of the year to readers.
Akshaya Rautaray and Satabdi Mishra, the duo who believe that the more India reads, the better shall it become started their journey in January 2014 with a few books in a backpack, walking to nearby villages to display books under trees and on the footpath in Koraput district of Odisha. Among the many challenges that they face, the biggest is the general apathy from the society where parents, teachers, schools, colleges and universities do not encourage reading books beyond a certain course curriculum which restricts our understanding of the world and makes us unable to create new things.
In December 2015 the Walking BookFairs traveling bookstore/library traveled across 20 states of India covering 10,000 km (6,213 miles) in three months. The trip was successful with a wide number of buyers and readers from all socio-economic backgrounds coming together to read and buy books which also shows how important bookshops and libraries are as democratic spaces in our society where people from all walks of life can come together to celebrate new ideas and thoughts. "There are innumerable social inequalities prevailing around us, and we are ignorant towards it because we aren’t aware of it. Reading helps bridge this gap. The more we read, the more aware we are. A society well-read and aware of the world's issues is a true mark of development," Akshaya further said.
Be it an Indian freedom fighter like Bhagat Singh, or a successful entrepreneur like Steve Jobs most leaders and great people in the world have the habit of avid reading to fuel their ideas. The Walking BookFairs brick and mortar bookshop in Khandagiri, Bhubaneswar is a beautiful and warm space that welcomes each new visitor with thousands of interesting books from various genres at affordable prices. Many interesting bookshop activities such as book readings, poetry evenings, book launches, book signings keep readers engaged and away from their cellphones and gadgets while giving them a chance to meet and interact writers from around the world. Akshaya and Satabdi believe that books are for everybody but sadly books have only been limited to the privileged people in our society and this is what they want to change through Walking BookFairs in its many forms, be it under a tree, or on the footpath, or in a Maruti Van or a book truck, it is all about making all kinds of books accessible and affordable for more people, everywhere. Akshay says, the number of shopping malls, restaurants, cafes and salons that we come across is always more when compared to the number of bookshops in a city. We can all help in our own way by reading more books, supporting indie bookshops by buying books from them and by helping others read more books through creating community libraries.
In their constant effort to bring good books to people in the city, they announced the opening of the 'Walking BookFairs Library' on their fourth anniversary on January 29 2018.
Book lovers can now register as members to take books home to read from their lovely library. Walking BookFairs has also published three Odia books, a collection of poetry and short stories. Their fourth book as publisher is an anthology of English poetry, '100 poems are not enough', featuring new and diverse voices from across India will soon be published. To contribute to their good work we can all: Support bookshops. Support reading. Support the idea of a new egalitarian world.
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn the more places you'll go.” - Dr Seuss
What if I say that there's a pretty book truck with loads of words dancing between the pages and someone somewhere is driving it towards you? Sounds interesting? Doesn’t it? Books on wheels! Now, what if I tell you it's right here and is true?
Walking BookFairs, the brainchild of Odisha's Akshaya Rautaray and Satabdi Mishra is one such indie bookshop, winner of the prestigious 'Bookstore of the Year Award' at the Publishing Next 2016 Industry Awards in Kochi, Kerala. The importance of reading books and the fact that not everyone is privileged or monetarily able to have access to books, was the beginning of the idea - The Walking BookFairs for Akshaya and Satabdi. Back in 2013 when Akshaya and Satabdi were living in Koraput district of Odisha, they became aware that children did not have access to the most basic source of knowledge - books. Their journey so far has been a tiny effort to change this situation. They wish to make books available to as many people as possible, which they do through their traveling bookstore/library and by giving out big discounts on all books at their bookshop all 365 days of the year to readers.
Akshaya Rautaray and Satabdi Mishra, the duo who believe that the more India reads, the better shall it become started their journey in January 2014 with a few books in a backpack, walking to nearby villages to display books under trees and on the footpath in Koraput district of Odisha. Among the many challenges that they face, the biggest is the general apathy from the society where parents, teachers, schools, colleges and universities do not encourage reading books beyond a certain course curriculum which restricts our understanding of the world and makes us unable to create new things.
In December 2015 the Walking BookFairs traveling bookstore/library traveled across 20 states of India covering 10,000 km (6,213 miles) in three months. The trip was successful with a wide number of buyers and readers from all socio-economic backgrounds coming together to read and buy books which also shows how important bookshops and libraries are as democratic spaces in our society where people from all walks of life can come together to celebrate new ideas and thoughts. "There are innumerable social inequalities prevailing around us, and we are ignorant towards it because we aren’t aware of it. Reading helps bridge this gap. The more we read, the more aware we are. A society well-read and aware of the world's issues is a true mark of development," Akshaya further said.
Be it an Indian freedom fighter like Bhagat Singh, or a successful entrepreneur like Steve Jobs most leaders and great people in the world have the habit of avid reading to fuel their ideas. The Walking BookFairs brick and mortar bookshop in Khandagiri, Bhubaneswar is a beautiful and warm space that welcomes each new visitor with thousands of interesting books from various genres at affordable prices. Many interesting bookshop activities such as book readings, poetry evenings, book launches, book signings keep readers engaged and away from their cellphones and gadgets while giving them a chance to meet and interact writers from around the world. Akshaya and Satabdi believe that books are for everybody but sadly books have only been limited to the privileged people in our society and this is what they want to change through Walking BookFairs in its many forms, be it under a tree, or on the footpath, or in a Maruti Van or a book truck, it is all about making all kinds of books accessible and affordable for more people, everywhere. Akshay says, the number of shopping malls, restaurants, cafes and salons that we come across is always more when compared to the number of bookshops in a city. We can all help in our own way by reading more books, supporting indie bookshops by buying books from them and by helping others read more books through creating community libraries.
In their constant effort to bring good books to people in the city, they announced the opening of the 'Walking BookFairs Library' on their fourth anniversary on January 29 2018.
Book lovers can now register as members to take books home to read from their lovely library. Walking BookFairs has also published three Odia books, a collection of poetry and short stories. Their fourth book as publisher is an anthology of English poetry, '100 poems are not enough', featuring new and diverse voices from across India will soon be published. To contribute to their good work we can all: Support bookshops. Support reading. Support the idea of a new egalitarian world.
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