Yali Books DANCING IN THATHA'S FOOTSTEPS tells the story of Varun who falls in love with bharatanatyam, a classical dance form from India, after tagging along to his sister's dance class one day. The only thing is, boys don't dance -- or so he is told by everyone around him. Disheartened he stops himself from dancing but his fascination with bharatanatyam persists until one day his grandfather, his thatha, surprises Varun and the other students, proving that dance is indeed for everyone.
As publishers we are always eager to submit the titles we champion for book awards with a lot of hope that they will be well received. We were delighted when DANCING IN THATHA'S FOOTSTEPS won its first books award, Winner 2022 South Asia Book Award. It was a very fitting book award in our minds.
Just as Thatha surprised the children in the story, we were surprised with the notification of a second book award from a very unexpected place -- the Gerontological Society of America. As it turns out, DANCING IN THATHA's FOOTSTEPS was nominated by a member for the 2024 Book Award for Best Children's Literature on Aging: Primary Reader category. Given by one of their six membership groups, the Academy for Gerontology in Higher Education (AGHE), this award recognizes positive portrayals of older adults in children’s literature. Also, so very fitting for this beautiful story about the bond between Varun, his thatha, and their love for bharatanatyam.
In publishing you are truly always a learner, and an award coming from a community that hadn't crossed our minds as an audience for this book, has truly pushed us to expand the lens through which we view our catalog and our forthcoming titles.
Extending the heartiest congratulations to the author and illustrator team behind this empowering story, Srividhya Venkat (author) and Kavita Ramachandran (illustrator), and warmest thank you to the Gerontological Society of America and the Academy for Gerontology in Higher Education (AGHE) for this meaningful recognition. We are so proud of this book and the example it sets for our young and young at heart readers.