CHENNAI: Who knows what awaits in the blues of the ocean? Perhaps dangerous creatures, an endless bottom, or omnipresent darkness? For 45-year-old Uma Mani, the ocean brought the beginning of once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, all with the marvelous colours of coral reefs. The cool water embraced her like a mother, and gentle currants rocked her as if the sea was singing a lullaby, writes Lubaina Bandukwala in her 2021 release Coral Woman. The picture book documents Uma’s journey from her discovery of corals to her eventual passion for conservation with simple, yet gripping prose and captivating illustrations.
Age never stopped Uma from trying anything new. So, when the chance to learn French while residing in the Maldives presented itself, the adventurer, who is in her mid-40s, was quick to take it up. This is where she came across the documentary on corals that began it all. Months after painting the invertebrate animals from images, she made her first dive — a magical experience — and then a few more (in India), less impressive, thanks to the pollutants in the sea. But the harshness of reality has not taken away Uma’s love for the ocean, rather made it more protective.
“The ocean has a mind of its own. When a person who likes the ocean enters it, the ocean understands the person. There is a relationship between the ocean and the person who enters it with an open mind. It is not a dumpyard like it’s treated currently,” she poetically narrates.
The fire in Uma — and the incredible journey to understand corals and work towards preserving them — sparked the inspiration for Priya Thuvassery’s documentary Coral Woman. So, when AVID Learning, the cultural philanthropy arm of Essar Group, commissioned Lubaina to pen down the story, she was careful not to replicate it. “Writing the book was fun but challenging. I wanted to find scenes in the film that would resonate with the kids and take the message one step forward.
I wanted to make Uma relatable...how does it matter to children that a middle-aged woman (accomplished this)? You and I can understand what it takes. But, children are grounded by strong women with dreams that they put aside or pursue. Seeing Uma or someone familiar (would help them) see the women around them in a different light,” shares Lubaina.
Lubaina’s writing is not too complicated and rather effective for such a story, with a lesson. It highlights the emotions in Uma’s tale, while still educating about corals through nuggets and boxes of information. Whether you read it as a child or an adult, the story keeps the prose engaging, despite the textbook-esque format that is generally more for a younger reader base. She structures the plot well, knowing exactly where to add additional facts.
However, what carries the vision is the interjection by the post-impressionist illustrations of picture book artist Sanket Pethkar. Handmade in acrylic (and slightly touched up digitally), the images of corals, the water, and more, feel nearly tactile, as though you may be able to touch the texture he has created (You can’t, I tried). The vivid colours washed across the pages in thick patches of impasto (a technique you may know from Van Gogh’s Starry Night) draw your eyes to every corner, seeking more.
“The book is an interesting fusion, as the script has a textbook orientation and also a biography of a painter and conservationist. The challenge for me was to fuse both. I based my painting around a few words I picked up from the script: coral graveyard, pollution, for instance,” Sanket explains. The most interesting addition is Uma Mani’s paintings hidden within Sanket’s, as shown in the image above, challenged only by the adorable drawings created by children at a book illustration workshop that were sprinkled through the book.
At the end of the day, the book is more of an infotainment device that is a great introduction to corals and conservation for children. For adults, however, it’s a matter of taste. If you like human stories and the ocean, this one’s for you. But to answer the age-old question: is the book better than the film? That’s for us to know, and you to find out.
Publishers: HarperCollins Children’s Books
Price: Rs 299
Pages: 44