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Excerpt from an interview at Junior Library Malya Aditi International School on 20-11-2003
Economic Times, Madras Plus Interview:Anupama V Chand CHILD’S PLAY Brilliant Strokes Creativity and children are synonymous…children’s author and illustrator Jeyanti Manokaran in conversation with ET Madras Plus Anupama V Chand She exudes a tranquil peace and charm, and draws children to her like bees to a honey pot! Children’s author and illustrator, Jeyanti Manokaran regaled adults and children alike with her quaint fairytale Ramesh and the Magic Mat, at the drawing and colouring exhibition for children held at Books Bytes ’N’ Beyond, the library and resource center at Sharanalaya Montessori School in Nungumbakkam last Saturday.Jeyanti first stared her career in advertising, and subsequently worked for education of rural children, under Dr and Mrs Kurien, who introduced the Play-Way Method of education for children in India. Jeyanti has written several short, self-illustrated books for kids, including Saving Grandma’s Tree, based on the Chipko Movement, intended for older kids and A Doggone Good Story, the last one was completed for a client in the US, using him and his two sons to illustrate the story. "I moved from advertising to writing and illustrating for kids, because I found my heart was set on doing something to enhance their creativity. They are so innocent and impressionable, and today the tools we have at our disposal, such as printing technology and multimedia, only mean that all we need to do is understand what children will love and relate to, and then imagine your character and subject. The sky is the limit, we can do so much," she smiles. She has throughout used the Madhubani and Warli traditional art forms to illustrate her books, and feels kids just love the intricate stick-like dancing forms of Warli art, which literally allows them to think visually. "A little bit of humour always helps with kids. The trick of course is to get them into the reading habit, which is fast disappearing under the onslaught of the multimedia revolution. Parents and teachers should just focus more on books, and provide a nice balance across the mélange of media options available," advises Jeyanti. Having worked for both corporate and voluntary organisations, including Sherston Educational Software, Scholastic, ActionAid, Orient Longman, Macmillan, Hallmark Cards, The Azim Premji Foundation, and The Centre for Learning Resources, Jeyanti avers that today India has some excellent writers, although they don’t always find a good market, let alone the means to promote their works. She lauded the initiative of events like the drawing and colouring exhibition, which gave children in the city a chance to compete with themselves, rather than each other, and discover the hidden artist within. "Every one of us can draw; you don’t need to have special classes for it. I always trained myself; even if you have started to write your name, then you are an artist to some extent," she asserts, with a twinkle.
Maharashtra Herald Interview:By Uma Chandran JEYANTHI:PENCHANT FOR PORTRAITS It will be a rare treat for art lovers of Pune to witness a colourful exhibition of paintings at the Ravindra Kala Kunj, this month end. The artist is Jeyanthi Manokaran who specializes in portraits. It is a dream come true for Jeyanthi to display her creations which are painstakingly done to perfection. The theme - 'Tribals of India', will give a glimpse into the colour, costume and culture - the 3 Cs which always fascinated Jeyanthi. She firmly believes that all these should be blended into portrayals of tribals. Set against the black background that accentuates the vibrant costumes and native expressions, the painting of tribals offered wide scope and great satisfaction to her imagination and creative urge. An indepth written study accompanies each portrait. These creations gave her a chance to explore a new world- the world of aboriginies the Adivasis. A graduate in English Literature from Madras and a diploma in commercial art from the New Delhi Polytechnic for Women, she says, is not sufficient for a successful career. "It's all the hard work and experience after college that counts," she feels. Even as a child of ten years, Jeyanthi displayed a keen interest in drawing and painting. Thanks to her teacher who singled her out and encouraged her and her parents who did everything possible for her - today she has become a sensitive portrait artist. Jeyanthi has won many laurels - but she is mainly interested in illustrating for children. Recognising her flair for it, the Orient Longman Publishers entrusted her with the task of illustrating books for kinder-garten children. She has so far illustrated 14 books. She has even written two books herself. 'Sunflowers and Butterflies' (to be published) and 'I Like the World' for nursery children. The Madras Advertising Club in its fifth advertising art exhibition, awarded her the second prize for the calendar done for Ashok Leyland. In 1990, for an all India competition on children's books illustration, the Children's Book Trust (CBT) gave her a certificate of merit. Jeyanthi is at present, illustrating for the Centre for Learning Resources (CLR), Pune. The Centre, with Zakiya Kurrien as the Jt. Director, conducts inservice training for teachers and designs low cost learning materials for schools and non-formal educational programmes at the pre-primary and elementary levels. The anthropology department at the University of Pune and the Jayakar library of the University of Pune were of great help in collecting information. "Simplicity is what directed me to choose the topic to paint these coy and bashful tribal women. They have naïve and native expressions marked in their faces," Jeyanthi replies when asked. Jeyanthi combines environmental education in her books. The exhibition at Ravindra Kala Kunj from April 30 to May 2 is a landmark in her career as a portrait artist. It is her maiden venture and is surely going to be a treat for the art lovers/critics of Pune. The New Indian Express, Bangalore Interview: Jeyanthi Manokaran JEYANTHI MANOKARAN IS A FREELANCE VISUALISER AND ILLUSTRATOR WHO WORKS IN BANGALORE. WHY DID YOU CHOOSE THIS PROFESSION? However, after two years in advertising, I moved on to working in kids' edutainment, because my heart is in this kind of work. WHY IS THERE A SUDDEN BOOM IN SELLING
PRODUCTS RELATED TO KIDS? WHAT ARE THE DIFFICULTIES YOU FACE IN
YOUR PROFESSION? The disadvantages are that too many people are trying out stuff for kids without really understanding them. You've got to be very sure of yourself before critics tear you to pieces! HOW IMPORTANT IS TRAINING TO STUDENTS
INTERESTED IN ENTERING THE PROFESSION? IS IT NECESSARY TO ENROLL
IN A COURSE? WHICH ARE THE INSTITUTIONS THAT OFFER COURSES? A five year course is not really necessary. Many artists are self taught, which is a good thing, but a little guidance is useful in the initial stages. WHAT IS YOUR ADVICE TO STUDENTS ENTERING
THE PROFESSION? New Indian Express, June 1st 2005 – School Magazine Stories about the stories Seena Menon takes a look at contemporary Indian writing for children. (An excerpt) …It is also possible to use new visuals and illustrations for the stories. Jeyanthi Manokaran, a freelancing author and illustrator with Scholastic India, uses folk art to illustrate her stories. She uses Madhubani and Warli art forms. She says,” Children appreciate forms like Warli. You can do all you want with these figures and forms.” For her, the most important thing in her stories is humour. Whether it be topics close to her heart like education and environment, all the stories are laced with humour. And aren’t we all looking for a few laughs when we open a book to read? Seeing black or colourful figures dancing across the pages running smoothly with the story adds to the delight of reading… …Madhubani paintings originate from Bihar. It literally means ‘the forest of honey’ and are painted using vegetable dyes on handmade paper. Warli paintings originate from Maharashtra and are simple paintings on mud, charcoal and cowdung treated surfaces using rice paste for whites. Jeyanthi Manokaran has worked closely with the tribal artistes and can paint these forms with great finesse. Her story ‘Wake Up Lazybones’ uses Warli paintings to tell the story of Bopu the Buffalo, who simply refuses to wake up…
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