Igniting the Passion for Reading: Kelvi’s Live Book Reading Experience

Recognizing the Decline in Reading Habits:

In an era where entertainment is readily available at our fingertips, thanks to the evolution of the internet and the explosion of social media, the cherished habit of reading books has sadly begun to wane. Recognizing this trend, we at Kelvi are dedicated to revitalizing the love for books within our community.

At the heart of Kelvi lies a deep appreciation for books, and we have taken it upon ourselves to ignite a passion for reading once again. That’s why we recently organized a Live Book Reading event at our beloved Amphitheatre this past Sunday evening.

Preparation and Organization for the Live Book Reading Event:

This time, I made sure to prepare the flyer well in advance to inform everyone about the event, allowing for better planning. Thanks to Chitlapakkam Rising admin for the share in their official FB handle to spread the word. Additionally, I invested in a microphone to record the offline event proceedings, which will be uploaded to our YouTube channel. This serves our regular online audience and reaches those who couldn’t attend in person.

Furthermore, I created two short promo videos to provide more information about the event, the selected book, key takeaways, and the purpose behind our book reading initiative.

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All the preparations were completed smoothly and ahead of time. However, despite the seamless planning, I couldn’t shake off my nerves, considering it’s my first time conducting a book reading in front of others.

Exploring the Inner Narrator: Identity and Voice:

When I read books silently, an imaginary voice narrates the story in my mind. Until recently, I never paused to consider the origin of this voice. However, as I prepared for my upcoming book reading session, I found myself questioning my own voice, vocabulary, reading pace, pauses, and flow. This introspection led me to wonder about the identity of the voice that accompanies my reading journey. Is it the voice of the author, seamlessly interwoven with the text? Or perhaps it’s my own, stemming from an alter ego within me?

To explore this further, I began recording my own voice as I read a page from various books and uploaded these recordings to YouTube. This served as a means of self-evaluation and an opportunity to receive feedback from others. Through this process, I hoped to gain insight into my reading style and voice, while also unravelling the mystery of the inner narrator that guides me through the world of literature.

What’s your reading style? Have you ever experienced the same feelings I did? Do you also hear an imaginary voice in your mind while reading? Let me know in the comments to hear from you.

Empowering Parents Through Awareness:

Summoning all my courage, I began crafting the content for our upcoming book reading session. I carefully selected the chapter titled “Art of Selling” from Pradip K Saha’s book, “The Learning Trap”. This chapter sheds light on the aggressive marketing tactics employed by Byju’s sales team, targeting the fears, guilt, and ignorance of vulnerable parents striving to provide the best education for their children, especially during the pandemic when traditional schools were closed due to lockdowns.

The goal of this session is to raise awareness about the aggressive marketing strategies used by corporations, particularly targeting parents, and to encourage a discussion on the topic. Through this dialogue, we aim to empower parents to make informed decisions for their children’s education, without succumbing to the pressure induced by fear of missing out (FOMO) and other marketing traps.

Creating an Engaging and Inclusive Experience:

To ensure that our new book reading initiative doesn’t resemble a mundane classroom textbook session, I’ve taken steps to keep the content engaging and dynamic. I’ve marked key points that will grab the listener’s attention, aiming to break the reading at strategic moments to initiate lively conversations. Additionally, I’ve decided to incorporate a mix of both English and Tamil languages to ensure that the essence of my reading reaches all listeners, allowing them to grasp the content and intent of the chapter effectively.

Drawing from past offline sessions held at the same venue, I’ve addressed the issue of low audio levels by arranging a speaker setup. This setup will help overcome distractions caused by the open-air setting and ensure that participants can hear my voice clearly. Furthermore, I’ve made arrangements for recording the session, providing an option for those who couldn’t attend in person to access the content later.

By incorporating these measures, I aim to create an immersive and inclusive experience for all participants, fostering meaningful discussions and enhancing the overall engagement of the book reading session.

Mock Test:

Before the actual event, I conducted mock sessions with my wife to gauge her reactions and gather feedback. I’m grateful to her for her patience in listening to the content for an hour and providing valuable visual cues for tweaking before the real event.

As part of our preparations, I arranged for painting activities to engage the children while the parents focused on the book reading, which was aimed specifically at them.

The Actual Test:

With everything set, we headed to the venue, albeit running five minutes late. Upon arrival, we were delighted to find Gowri Aasi waiting for us, punctual as always. We quickly set up the flyer, tripod for video recording, painting materials for the kids, and the books on stands, all against the stunning backdrop of the evening sunset.

To our surprise, two young enthusiasts named Aanadh and Barath, who discovered Kelvi through random YouTube watches, travelled all the way from Poonamalle (15KM away from the venue) by bus and walked 2KM from the bus stop to attend our live session. Their kind gesture shattered the myth that today’s youth only spend time on entertainment and further motivated me to proceed with determination.

Joining us were Bharathwaj, Rajesh, Gomathi, along with their children. Together (Obviously along with Aarav & Priya), we commenced the live book reading session with these wonderful souls who supported our noble cause, motivated by our initiative to give back to society and raise awareness.

Here’s the recording of the full session.

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Please watch it at your convenience and share your valuable feedback and advice to help improve future sessions. I look forward to seeing more people join us in making this initiative a global one, creating an informed community for the better future of our next generation in this fast-paced world.

Thank you for your time and support! Happy Learning!