If the people can’t come to the bookshop…bring the bookshop to the people.
A love story
This is such a beautiful, good news story that it’s easy to forget how much blood, sweat, and tears were likely involved.
Let’s call it a multi-dimensional love story, starring Akshaya Rautaray and Satabdi Mishra. They connected among books and together decided to invest in some books to put in their backpacks. On foot, they displayed the books to sell at bus stops and on footpaths. That was 2014, in the Koraput District in the Indian State of Odisha.
The pair spoke to ChangeMakers about their original vision:
“The idea was to take books to people who have been denied the joy of reading for ages. We did not find real bookshops with story books or libraries that were open to all and functional in many parts of Odisha. The only bookshops that exist are shops selling stationery/mobile recharge vouchers or textbooks and guide books. We wanted the common man to look at books, hold a book, read a book and also be able to buy a book. We started taking books to nearby villages and small towns and displayed books on the footpath and other public spaces where the common man could easily have a look at books without feeling intimidated.”
Soon, the backpacking duo bought a used Maruti minivan and their project travelled through small towns and rural areas. Folks lined up to read new stories (read for free! Imagine!) and have the chance to buy discounted books. By 2017, they had travelled 10,000 km throughout all 30 districts of Odisha. They brought all kinds of books: literary fiction, nonfiction, poetry, classics, picture books, children’s books, and maps.
The Walking BookFair mobile bookshop is now a pickup truck. Built into the cargo space is customized shelving carrying thousands of titles, all new. They welcome browsing and reading for as long as people feel like it. Their books are in English and Hindi. One important challenge in book distribution is that each state has its own language; there are 22 official languages in India. Stocking books in all the various languages is not practical at this point. But English is widely spoken in every state.
Eventually, they also set up two brick-and-mortar bookstores, one in Bhubaneswar and another in Bangalore. Here, children come to read books for free, as they are unable to afford the purchase price. To the Western mind, this is an amazing act of generosity. Certainly, the modern bookshop is not considered in any sense a library.
Now, they host book launches, author events, and other promotions that build community in their stores. Check out, for example, this huge book giveaway. How better to spread one’s love of books than to give them away from time to time?
No Bookshops or Libraries
Indian cities are host to very few libraries and bookshops. In small towns and villages, these are almost non-existent. Satabdi says, “We found big international schools without libraries. We found big universities where students do not read anything beyond their course curriculum.” If people outside the big cities had an interest in books, they simply could not access them.
Related: The Indian Publishing Industry: For Love or Money?
India’s publishing data reveals that educational books (think textbooks and curriculum) account for around 95% of the total publishing market. For comparison, developed economies usually have a publishing industry dominated by trade books, with educational/academic materials the minority of books sold.
And so it was no surprise to learn that their biggest challenge is the cultural attitude to reading: Most people did not understand the importance of books, beyond textbooks. Parents and teachers were frequently reluctant to introduce their children to storybooks.
Entrepreneurs Extraordinaire
Baishali Mukherjee, writing for Entrepreneur India in 2017, called the Walking BookFair “an apposite and exclusive model for social entrepreneurship.”
Social entrepreneurship is more than just business, and it’s different also from a non-profit organization. It is a business opportunity that generates positive outcomes for the community. It’s an organic and sustainable way to create change.
And they have been rewarded with the confidence of global publishing giants Penguin Random House, Harper Collins India, Pan Macmillan India, and Parragon Publishing India. These companies have contributed books to the project, particularly for the “Read More India 2015” Tour, which promoted reading across the country.
What drives this passion for change?
“We are not giving our children a chance to love books, which can teach them so much more than the 10 course books their world is limited to. We are limiting their horizon to only marks, grades, and ultimately finding a well-paying job.”
Walking BookFairs
As for future plans, they are spearheading a true electronic book revolution…they launched the world’s first electric mobile bookstore—the Walking BookFairs book-tuk—early in 2022.
You can follow Walking BookFairs on Instagram and Twitter.
And to finish with more of the beauty of India and its books, check out this veritable feast for the eyes: a walkthrough of the Kolkata Book Fair 2022.