Bengaluru: Gone are the days when children, tucked into their beds, would listen to stories from their grandparents. Oral storytelling that was confined to homes has now turned into a profession, with storytellers striving to perfect the art.
“For every trend, there is an anti-trend and there are two things I see here. First, in this age of iPads and smartphones, people are slowly looking for raw human connection. The authenticity of listening to a person and engaging in conversation is missed. Secondly, with the rise of nuclear families, children barely get to see their grandparents anymore, and oral storytelling is filling that void,” explains Ameen Haque of Storywallahs, which specialises in business storytelling, teacher training and storytelling performances.
“It is a performance, just like any other art form. You don’t just read a story. You take the listener to a different space altogether,” says Ms Aparna Athreya, founding member, Bangalore Storytelling Society.
A storyteller for almost 17 years, she believes that the popularity has grown in leaps in recent years. “The growth has been tremendous. It stems from the realisation that oral storytelling isn’t just a nostalgia trip, but has multiple uses that go beyond entertainment.” Oral storytelling today is used by the corporate sector to aid their employees communicate better. In the health sector, it helps enhance the experience of a hospital stay and counselling, she says.
The art form engages the recipient in a wholesome manner, says Deeptha Vivekanand, founder of Ever After. “Oral storytelling engages all the senses of the listener. You imagine the story based on your experiences and perceptions. You are equally a part of the story as much as the storyteller is,” she says.
At the rate with which it is growing, the future is full of possibilities, says Mr Haque. “With the technology at hand, one can only imagine the possibilities. I see a lot of specialisation in storytelling happening in the next decade,” he says.
Ms Vivekananda echoes similar sentiments and attributes the growth to technology. “There is no shying away from the fact that storytelling has grown in the past few years, because of the social media and technology. Storytellers from all over the world are performing across borders through mediums like Youtube and Google Hangout. The key is to find a balance.”
