Sonal Singh On Sonal's Table
Book title – The journey of Bunty and Chinku
Publisher – self published Pages – 232 pages Language – English
Genre – real life
Author – Lakshman Molleti
Available on – amazon.in
Purchase link – https://www.amazon.in/Journey-Bunty-Chinku-Illustrations-Activities/dp/9357829830/ref=sr_1_2?crid=2IWOKXHF3BW3D&keywords=the+journey+of+bunty+and+chinku&qid=1678453986&sprefix=the+journey+of+bunty+and+%2Caps%2C254&sr=8-2
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About the author – Lakshman is an ex software professional with work experience in some of the top most companies like – Deloitte and Amdocs. His love for animals (for which he has been awarded) and his desire to contribute to the welfare of the same led him to shun the corporate path. He established the ‘Animals water bowl project’ (AWBP) and ‘Animals Invention’ (ANINV). Lakshman holds a patent grant from the Government of India patent Office for his invention relating to the safe disposal of small sharp and unsharp objects.
I first heard of the AWBP when my daughter interned for them over last summer.
About the book – The Journey of Bunty and Chinku is Lakshman’s first book. It is a semi-fictional narrative that follows the friendship between a boy named Bunty and his adopted dog Chinku through their journey to contribute to community welfare. Rescuing and adopting Chinku changes Bunty’s perception about animals. It awakens in him a desire to do more for the welfare of abandoned / stray animals and he embarks on a path to create awareness about the plight of such animals. He ropes in many willing and unwilling associates – his family, his friends, his neighbours, passersby on the road, etc. Together, along with his troupe of trusty friends, Bunty learns more about environmental and animal protection and his experiences are mentored by his association with Lakshman, the owner of an NGO.
The book echoes the real world experiences that many people face on a day to day basis. Human responsibility towards animal welfare in the community and its role in uplifting humans and the environment is the central theme and premise of the book. The book is divided into 10 chapters (titled stories) and what I absolutely loved about the book is the fact that each chapter tackles a particular issue relating to animal, environmental etc welfare – e.g., importance of water, how to involve more people, safe disposal of toxic garbage, etc. In each of these chapters the common denominator is the story of Bunty and Chinku (heavily borrowed, I suspect, from Lakshman’s own life and his love for his rescued and adopted dog Raju) and how they along with their friends learn and teach others to be more responsible towards the environment. Hence, as the friendship between Bunty and Chinku deepens and unfolds, the storyline moves from one topic to another in an informative manner. The language of the book is deceptively simple in keeping with the characters created.
Another thing that I really liked about this book is the fact that each chapter ends in a moral and that is further complemented by a set of questions which force the reader to introspect about the issues discussed in the preceding chapter. Isn’t that a wonderful way to ensure that the reader imbibes the values that the chapter discusses? Apart from these questions, lakshman has also very thoughtfully given action points on what people can do to adopt a more responsible attitude. He ends each chapter by a note to the reader to help inspire others also to do the right thing by clicking pictures and sharing that on social media.
This book is a wonderful way to teach children to adopt a more sensitive and empathetic outlook towards those that cannot speak or ask for help but need it the most. It is a must read for all animal lovers and I hope that via his NGO, Lakshman is able to partner with schools and other educational institutions so that this book can be made available at the libraries. In my opinion, the more this book reaches the right hands, the more chance it has of shaping the right minds so that they in turn can be harbingers of change.
All in all, this book is a heartfelt, educational and informative story, guaranteed to inspire you to contribute to animal welfare for the betterment of humans, animals, and the environment. The text is enhanced by the beautiful illustrations done by Yashvi Baldia. Do pick this volume up. Gift it to your child or other children and encourage them to read it and imbibe the values that it teaches.
