Anuradha Khaitan Gupta & Merry Readings

          

Books have always held a special place in Anuradha’s life. She recalls how as a pre-teen in 2002, holding a rented Harry Potter book in hand for the first time, she entered the wonderful world that would otherwise have been beyond her reach. Although she had a library in school, it didn't hold titles that interested her, namely fantasy. Anuradha had a hard time making friends; for the longest time she believed there was something about her face which made people feel unwelcome.  

With time, she stopped reading. Partly because she didn't have money to buy books and also because she didn't have the time. Pursuing graduation, a job, and then marriage left little or no time for reading. With her husband, Anuradha realized she had found her soul mate; one who reignited her love affair with books. She started reading voraciously, kept track of what she was reading, and started blogging in 2017. To begin with Anuradha did a lot of professional book reviews and her blog was featured in the list of Top 50 Indian book blogs. She was in a happy place. 

2018 saw the birth of her daughter and 2019 saw her slipping into PPD (postpartum depression). Needless to say, books took a backseat again. Lack of time and motivation kept Anuradha away from books. The final nail in the coffin was the 2020 pandemic which pushed her over the edge. Anuradha found herself alone, lying flat, face down at rock bottom. It was a dark time. But it was also when she reached out to her only true friend- books. One page at a time, one step at a time, she climbed out of the dark hole. 

The idea of a book club for kids had been taking root in her mind ever since she started reading books to her 18-month-old daughter. Her ever growing fondness of books and Anuradha’s empty pockets thanks to buying endless number of books, made her realize that her daughter had something Anuradha never had. Someone to show her the way to books, to guide her when she had doubts, and to encourage her to pick the books herself. The idea of a book club grew stronger. Anuradha’s vision was to create a safe space for kids to read and discuss what they read; to grow and nurture; most importantly to be kind and humane.

Merry Readings finally came into being after months of self-doubt and procrastination. At the behest of a dear friend, who has been nothing but kind and supportive, Anuradha decided to take the plunge. The desire to give kids something that she had, coupled with her own need of finding an identity independent of a wife and mom, gave her the impetus to start.

Entering an arena which had some well-established and respected story tellers was a challenge. What Anuradha wanted to do was for the long haul; book reading and not storytelling. In her mind, while one gave instant gratification, the other was like a slow burning fire which would need to be fanned every day for the rest of a child’s life.

The doubts were many. Would people understand the difference? Would they buy books? Book reading meant that everyone needed their own copies of the book. How would she let people know that there was a club where their kids could come and talk? Anuradha wanted to send across the message that she was there to listen to their kids, to urge them to think and debate.

She soon discovered that those who didn’t want to understand what she did, fell by the side-lines. Those who did, continue to be by her side since day one.

Anuradha’s nick name is Merry. She wanted a name which would convey the fact that the club was a happy place. And reading was fun. Merry Readings seemed to tick all the points. Today she holds sessions for 15+ kids of varying ages from 2–10-year-olds.

Apart from her love for books, Anuradha loves travelling and trying out new food.  

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