Parents who break into a cold sweat at the sight of mess, you might want to look away right about now. Ceramic artist Garima Sharma&rsquo;s upcoming sculpting session entails some graphic scenes like squishy clay oozing between tiny fingers, smudged faces, shirts doubling as hand towels. But at least it&rsquo;ll make for a good story to tell.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/apr/Child-sculpts_e.jpg" alt="(From left) A child adds finishing touches to a sculpture; an adult participant works with clay. PICS COURTESY/GARIMA SHARMA" width="1280" height="720" /> (From left) A child adds finishing touches to a sculpture. PICS COURTESY/GARIMA SHARMA
As part of Kahanikar, a <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/mumbai-guide/things-to-do/article/the-magic-of-storytelling-23478369" target="_blank" rel="none noopener">storytelling initiative</a> this Sunday, storyteller Neha Bahuguna will join Sharma in spinning an impromptu tale around miniature clay characters crafted by the tiny hands.
&ldquo;Children aren&rsquo;t afraid of getting their hands dirty. They often tell me that it reminds them of building sand castles at the beach or playing with mud in their gardens. It&rsquo;s usually the adults who need to gather a bit of courage. The only tactile experience they&rsquo;re used to is tapping away on screens,&rdquo; Sharma laughs.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/apr/garima-sharma-work_e.jpg" alt="Garima Sharma (left) sculpts at a previous workshop" width="1280" height="720" /> Garima Sharma (left) sculpts at a previous workshop
Bahuguna&rsquo;s twist ought to add some challenge to the participants&rsquo; playtime, but it&rsquo;s nothing short of a challenge for the duo. Sharma explains, &ldquo;We&rsquo;re working on a structure where Bahuguna will tell a story set in the wild. As it progresses, the participants will pick up from the story, reimagine it, and craft characters from their imagination.&rdquo;
The duo lets the cat out of the bag over our conversation. We learn of a feline character who will feature in the tale. Little does it know, its fate lies in the children&rsquo;s messy hands. &ldquo;As the storyteller describes the cat, the curious listeners will give it a shape and form. It could be a stout short cat, or a skinny one,&rdquo; Sharma tells us. &ldquo;The funny part is, with children, you can never plan things in advance. They might just drop the idea and turn the character on its head,&rdquo; Bahuguna laughs.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/apr/Senior-citizen-works_e.jpg" alt="an adult participant works with clay" width="1280" height="720" /> An adult participant works with clay
For Shweta Nadkarni, the organiser of Kahanikar, this experiment is a modest effort in making storytelling more engaging for <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/mumbai-guide/things-to-do/article/come-out-to-play-23524224" target="_blank" rel="none noopener">children</a>. &ldquo;At our usual storytelling events, I noticed how children who tag along with their parents, often lose interest after a few performances. I was at a sculpting session with my eight-year-old daughter earlier this year, when the idea of blending the two practices sparked,&rdquo; she recalls.
While the session is aimed towards children, the doors are open for teens, collegians, parents and senior citizens who are still young at heart. As the flyer of the event puts it, &lsquo;ages six to 99&rsquo;.
<img src="http://images.mid-day.com/images/images/2025/apr/Neha-Bahuguna_e.jpg" alt="Neha Bahuguna and Shweta Nadkarni" width="1280" height="720" />Neha Bahuguna and Shweta Nadkarni
Once the clay story reaches a happily ever after, Nadkarni recommends you stay for the evening&rsquo;s programming. Featuring veteran artistes like Arif Zakaria and livewires like Meghana Erande Joshi (who voiced the popular Doraemon character), we can bet there won&rsquo;t be any children yawning in sight.
ON 27 April; 2 pm to 8 pm AT Victoria Memorial School for the Blind, Arya Nagar, Tulsiwadi, Tardeo. LOG ON TO @main_kahanikar ENTRY RSVP mandatory<script type="text/javascript">atOptions={'key':'d0ddb8ef8f1a62a8cdd22fac27fc5ea7','format':'iframe','height':90,'width':728,'params':{}};</script>
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A ceramic artist and a storyteller will join hands for an immersive storytelling session this weekend

Shape a story: This session for children blends sculpting and storytelling

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Shape a story: This session for children blends sculpting and storytelling

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