In response to requests from friends about upcoming events, here are links to some conferences and workshops to which you could apply if interested. Please feel free to add to the list in the comments section. NFSI 2019 – 3 Day International Conference, New Frontiers of Sanskrit and Indic Knowledge, 2019, Ernakulam, Kerala, India. Theme: Human Development […]
Author: Masala chai: Musings about our relationships with little people
We are a small group of people deeply dedicated to the scientific study of childhood and family life focussing primarily, but not exclusively on issues related to Indian society and culture. Two of us have doctoral degrees in Child Development, and long-standing careers in teaching and research about childhood in India, with several scientific and popular publications to our credit. The others are interested parents/family members who will assist us in this task.
Addressing real and imagined fears we have as parents
A Commentary Bhavna Negi’s article ‘Shhhhh!’ posted a couple of weeks ago raises a key conundrum of raising children; that despite the fact that children are safer, more secure and better able to survive infancy and early childhood than ever before, why are we so afraid of the risks they face? Why is it that […]
Reposting Gilly’s story
Friends, this morning, we are reposting an essay from several months ago, in case some of you may have missed reading about Gilly. We’ve just celebrated Children’s day in India and it’s an opportune moment for us to reflect on our relationships with children, and what we can learn from our association with other creatures. […]
Risk and protection: Addressing real and imagined fears we have as parents
Some months ago, we received a piece from Bhavna Negi about a family conversation. With the post, we wish to initiate a discussion of our anxieties as parents, and to question why, although our lives have become more secure, fears have also escalated. We are more worried about children’s safety than ever before. What can […]
Re-posting ‘Fish no more’: Beliefs about living, dying and living on
As I arranged his mane on a bed of lettuce leaves, I felt a lump of emptiness in my stomach. He was so tiny. The resplendent sheen of life had left his fins and his eyes, these were uncharacteristically clouded and colourless, quite like the overcast sky on that Sunday morning. Gentle drops of rain […]
Brats in the Media?
A letter that failed to catch the Editor’s attention! A couple of weeks ago an article that appeared in the Hindu Sunday magazine is the subject of today’s post. Children are our business and pleasure, and how they’re discussed in the media is an important concern for us. People are influenced by what they read […]
Don’t bother! You’re incapable of learning
“Don’t bother with trying to read, I was told” In November 1988, Robin Woods received a sentence of 16 years in prison for robbery, and although he had earlier spent a couple of years behind bars before, the length and severity of his sentence was acknowledged to be disproportionately harsh. But this reference to his […]
“Rural children imitate whereas urban children imagine” – What? Really?
Revisiting David Lancy’s comment in Anthropology of Childhood, an otherwise fabulous piece of work. Around five years ago, I had posted this note on Facebook. We thought this debate was an interesting one to raise on Masala Chai to invite your thoughts on the matter. The original post had generated many comments that we append […]
Re-posting our first ever essay
“Papa, how will I know what is right?” The Episode It started as a regular workshop with parents at a local school. We spoke, took questions, discussed strategies for handling situations, about shyness, morality, relationships, about sibling rivalry, about aggression; the usual range of concerns parents have. Towards the end of the morning an older […]
A critique of contemporary child rearing practices
Have you ever wondered why, as support for raising children from market goods, support groups and online assistance becomes more accessible, the fear of having children is also on an unprecedented high? Here are some reflections from an extract from Lancy’s 2017 book.
Cutting Chai: Sing me a name to remember me by!
What is common between the Khasi hills of northeast India, the pastures of the Canary Islands and grasslands of the Black Sea region in Turkey? These three completely unconnected areas are bound by an audio thread. People who live here use sounds to communicate that borrow from nature. One of the three (we could find) […]
In Defence of Rote Learning: Conversations
Last month, I was invited by a large corporate organization to look through their project related to interventions with schools. The scheduled meeting was a phone consultation, and I received an elegantly crafted ppt to guide our conversation. Of course, the presentation was exclusively about how great the group was, with very little indication about […]
