Fun activities for kids always have a way of brightening a space — whether it’s colouring, crafting, or tumbling into a treasure hunt — and adults, knowingly or not, often get pulled into that infectious energy too. That same joy filled Saptaparni, Banjara Hills, where Star Papaya hosted its Festival of Play, transforming the venue into a vibrant playground of workshops, games, food, art corners, shopping pop-ups and open-ended fun. From the ‘healthy, notorious food’ by Sid Farms to indie clothing labels from Bengaluru, and from painting floors and walls at the Little Boto Project to browsing handcrafted books and toys, the entire space pulsed with colour, activity and imagination.
The idea behind this festival, co-founder Deepti Chadda says, was born during the pandemic in Singapore. “We started Star Papaya during COVID as we were living there, and we used to do a lot of story-based play with our children at home. They loved it,” she recalls, adding, “We wanted to keep them away from screens, keep them engaged and help them play independently.” What started as story sets for their own children soon evolved into a brand. When they brought Star Papaya to India, they noticed a gap: “There are very few places in India where a parent can take a child and do slow, meaningful activities together. It requires advocacy with parents too — to encourage free, independent, imaginative play instead of structured classics,” she says. And so the Festival of Play emerged, she shares, “As a place where we can encourage imagination, connection and community.”
Their first edition earlier this year set the foundation. “We had to meet every single person who wanted to be involved,” Deepti laughs. But things changed quickly. “The second time, people saw this happening and they came to us,” she laughs. This gave the team room to strengthen the festival’s core. “This time, we really focused on the quality of workshops and brands. We have people from Bengaluru, Chennai, Mumbai; we want to bring this level of content to Hyderabad, and there is definitely a market for it.”
Co-founder Echo Han highlights how carefully the stalls were curated. “We have mostly conscious brands who think about the needs of kids today: creative and imaginative,” she explains. The lineup included Off The Shelf, a Hyderabad-based book stall; a charming library corner; Gram Art Collective from Madhya Pradesh with products made from natural materials; a wooden toy brand from Bengaluru; and Mumbai’s Mouse in the House with their character-inspired clothing. “We even have baby food brands,” Echo adds, “The idea is to bring all kinds of play to Hyderabad and a lot of children’s authors come here for workshops.”
But building something this immersive wasn’t without its obstacles. “The biggest challenge is that we are a product company that sells toys,” Deepti admits, adding, “We started this with passion — we wanted to bring play to Hyderabad. We didn’t realise the time, effort and money it takes.” The first edition was completely self-funded. “It’s a community event, and we raise enough to cover the cost. Sustainability is the real challenge, finding people who want to sponsor something like this and keep it beautiful,” she shared.
Even so, the vision ahead remains expansive. “We do a lot of smaller sessions like storytelling, play experiences,” Deepti says, adding, “We recently did one at Crafts Council. Every few months, we keep doing something.” Large-format festivals like this, however, will remain limited for quality’s sake. “We wouldn’t do more than a couple in a city, but we do want to take it to more places. We’ve already received requests from Bengaluru, Mumbai and more. We’re based in Hyderabad but want to take it elsewhere,” concludes Deepti.