It was with great enthusiasm that the students of Std. VII enjoyed some candid moments with the well-known biographer, Ms. Veena Gavankar, on Friday, 23rd November 2018 at our school.
A former librarian and an avid reader, she shared the life stories of Loius Agassi and George Washington Carver- two of the many unsung heroes introduced to us through her writing- and their journey from a very humble beginning to the great achievements in their lives. ‘EkHota Carver’, her debut novel and biography of American agriculturist George Washington Carver in the year 1979 kick started her career as a writer.
Connecting to the young students in a friendly manner, Ms.Gavankar also emphasized that these unsung heroes should be the source of inspiration for the children. These real life heroes started in their lives with very humble beginnings but with their grit and determination they could reach for the stars!
Replying to the enthusiastic questions by the students, she mentioned that she has authored 10 books and has truly enjoyed the entire journey until now.
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Her presence at this talk was so friendly and welcoming that our students asked her quite a few questions. They asked her about her hobbies to things like ‘Is Ramayan & Mahabharat history or fiction’; to which her answers were equally engaging- Coming from rural area, she acquired her interest in reading due to the small box of books available in the reading period or the free time in her school. Though she is an avid reader, Autobiographies and Biographies hold special interest for her as they tell us about real life heroes. Amid other discussion, she explained that some details viz. locations etc. in the Epics like Mahabharata were true yet we lack evidence of the actual and complete plot/the events in these stories
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She further explained that reading was the foundation of, not only her- a writer’s, profile but also of any other successful person’s life. In fact selective reading i.e. reading the correct thing is a skill, she said.Reading is the canvas on which one can create his achievements. Thus, we reiterate the wisdom in the age-old saying- ‘Books are our best friends’!
