Launch of “The Tale of Makkhilal” by Katha
New Delhi:
In the land of Makkhipuri,
The fly was god for all,
They prayed to it for good health,
They called it Makkhilal.
What happens when a fly becomes the god of a village? Terrible things, you’d imagine. But one person in the village sees through the fly’s wicked ploy. Would she be able to save the village? Find out the answers to all these questions and a lot more in this romp of a poem — a new title, “The Tale of Makkhilal” by Katha, that will encourage young readers to think about hygiene, role models, the power of one and a lot more.
India is one of the countries with the highest number of diseases arising from hygienic issues, especially through spread of infections by houseflies. One of them is diarrhoea, which has been quite common. In India, diseases like diarrhoea kill almost 300 children every day! While studying these issues and creating remedies are simple, and the spread of houseflies is quite common, it is very rare to see people talking about it, especially in mainstream education.
“The Tale Of Makkhilal”, written by Geeta Dharmarajan, with illustrations by Charbak Dipta, aims to talk about this common issue with hazardous consequences and simple remedies in the form of a delightful poem which will be fun and easy for kids to comprehend. The illustrations add to generating excitement among the kids to flip the pages. The title , available in English (https://books.katha.org/product/the-tale-of-makkhilal/) and Hindi (https://books.katha.org/product/makkhilal-ki-mahima/), not only creates urgent awareness about the consequences of hazardous diseases and infections but also helps the readers take necessary steps to protect themselves. With focus on a housefly, which is an active agent of the spread of many diseases and health problems among people in India, the book comes with additional information regarding houseflies and the diseases spread by them as well as suggestions on how one can take care of themselves against the diseases. Like every Katha book, it has a special section containing TADAA; some interesting, reflective exercises that encourage the kids to think, ask, discuss, act, and achieve. “The Tale Of Makkhilal” is available for pre-order on www.books.katha.org(Rs. 195). An e-version of the title can also be purchased on Amazon Kindle (Rs. 99).
Says Geeta Dharmarajan, Founder, Katha – “This book is a call to action for students,teachers, parents, and everyone else, who cares about the fact that so many children lose their lives to a disease that can be prevented. It talks about ways to safeguard children from fly-borne diseases which is not difficult. This book gives some simple and easy tips to make cleanliness a habit.”