Shillong, April 26: After six months of research, cultural exploration, and creative collaboration, The Forgotten Folklore Project (TFFP) Fellowship graduation 2024-25 and storytelling handbook launch were held in the city on Saturday.
Launched by the Sauramandala Foundation and supported by The/Nudge Institute, in collaboration with StoryWeaver by Pratham Books, the TFFP Fellowship brought together 15 fellows and 7 artists from across seven Northeastern states: Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim, and Tripura to preserve, reimagine, and share the region’s rich tapestry of oral traditions and folklore.
This milestone event marked the release of 20 new children’s storybooks, developed during the fellowship, deeply rooted in indigenous narratives and enriched with vibrant, culturally authentic illustrations. These books are designed not only to preserve stories passed down through generations but also to cater to the Early Childhood Development (ECD) needs of young readers in the region.
The Forgotten Folklore Project Storytelling Handbook is a creative and practical guide developed from the fellowship experience, aimed at educators, cultural practitioners, and aspiring storytellers to continue the work of contextual storytelling.
Since its inception in 2020 in Meghalaya, TFFP has become a platform for cultural preservation, community storytelling, and early education. With 45 storybooks already published and translated into Khasi, Pnar, and Garo, and now 20 more added from seven states, the project continues to build a growing library of contextual children’s literature in and from the Northeast.
“When we started The Forgotten Folklore Project in Meghalaya, it was with the hope that children would one day find their own communities reflected in the pages of their first books. To now see that vision expand across seven Northeastern states with stories written and illustrated by people from the region, is a reminder that storytelling is not just preservation, but also a powerful tool in early learning, shaping how children engage with identity, language, and the world around them. We are committed to creating more books across all states, continuing to celebrate the richness of our cultures through stories that children everywhere can see themselves in.”said Lanuangla Tsudir, Project Lead, The Forgotten Folklore Project
According to Monica Thomas, Editor, The Forgotten Folklore Project Fellowship, it was envisioned to bring together writers and illustrators from the North East Indian region to create beautifully illustrated contextual picture books for children. Now, six months later, authors and illustrators have successfully made their contribution to the repository of children’s books from the region. These are books about folklore, traditions, and lived experiences that children can see themselves in.
“The twenty books are just the tip of the iceberg, and we hope to expand such a project to include more authors and illustrators from the region”, she said.
The celebratory day in Shillong brought together fellows, artists, mentors, cultural leaders, educators, and representatives from partner organizations to honour the creative journey and look ahead to the future of storytelling in the region.
Education Minister Rakkam Sangma, TFFP founder Nagakarthik MP and CEO of Rainmatter Foundation Sameer Sishodia also spoke among others.
