When children hear about Durga, Lakshmi, and Saraswati during Navaratri, they learn about courage, abundance, and knowledge. This year, Lil Trails wants them to look beyond these familiar figures and find those qualities in the lives of women who have shaped India’s history and culture.
Titled ‘Shaktis of India’, the event brings together storytelling and music to explore the lives of Rani Velu Nachiyar, boxer Mary Kom, the women behind Lijjat Papad, dancer Rukmini Devi Arundale, mathematician Shakuntala Devi, and Carnatic musician MS Subbulakshmi. The performance forms part of Lil Navaratri, an initiative that introduces children and families to festivals through the arts.
Avanti Natarajan, co-founder of Lil Trails, says the idea emerged from a desire to move beyond mythological narratives and connect the qualities associated with the goddesses to real women’s lives. “For courage, we took Velu Nachiyar and Mary Kom. Lakshmi is more than money and gold. I feel it is abundance, and when you have more, you should share it as well,” she says. The women behind Lijjat Papad and Rukmini represent this idea of abundance, while Shakuntala and MS amma embody knowledge through mathematics and music.
The selection offers an opportunity to consider what children learn when familiar religious symbols become a way to discuss women’s achievements. It also raises questions about whose lives enter such narratives and whose contributions remain less visible. The organisers wanted to celebrate women whose qualities resonate with the spirit of Navaratri.
For Janaki Sabesh, actor, storyteller, and author, bringing these women into the conversation makes the qualities associated with the goddesses easier for children to understand. “When you say God, you place them on a pedestal, right? They are out of reach. But when you make them real, they are very much there. You can hear about her, you can speak to her, and even Google her,” she says.
Janaki will share three stories, while young storyteller Dira Paavai Rajavel will narrate three others. Madhuvanti Badri, a Carnatic musician and music educator, will weave songs through the narratives, with percussion by Vishwa Bharat.
Making room for curiosity
The programme is the latest collaboration between Lil Trails — which creates arts and learning experiences for children and families — and Aalaap, an arts consulting and management company. Akhila Krishnamurthy, founder and CEO of Aalaap, says the partnership aims to introduce children to the arts while helping them learn how to listen, respond, and share space with others. “When you go to a performance, it’s not merely about understanding the content of the performance. You learn decorum, how to behave, how to listen, empathy, share space with another audience member,” she says.
The organisers hope the experience will encourage children to engage with stories rather than simply receive lessons from them. Janaki says curiosity matters more than an explicitly stated moral. “They need to take back their curiosity. Because it is such a nice quality to have. We should ask ‘why’ rather than just follow some instructions that have been handed over from generations,” she says.
For Madhuvanti, the theme also offers a way to understand abundance beyond material wealth. She says generosity, creativity, and resilience can find expression in everyday life, and that music can help children connect with these qualities. The programme draws on different musical influences, including songs inspired by Subramania Bharati, alongside devotional music suited to the Navaratri setting.
The question of access becomes more complicated when classical arts intersect with caste and social privilege. Carnatic music and other classical traditions have histories shaped by unequal access to training, performance spaces, and cultural institutions. When asked how the organisers considered caste and gender hierarchies while creating an inclusive space for children, Akhila says, “We did not allow the lens of caste and gender and hierarchy to even come into play at all,” adding that she viewed the programme as an opportunity to celebrate women and their qualities, including those encountered in everyday life.
Madhuvanti says the programme draws on different musical influences rather than Carnatic music alone, while retaining devotional songs suited to Navaratri. The effort to make music accessible to young audiences offers an opportunity to examine how these traditions can be shared more widely.
The choice of women and the qualities assigned to them will shape how children encounter the theme. The programme’s emphasis on curiosity offers room for them to look beyond familiar images of goddesses and consider the women around them, including those whose work and knowledge rarely receive public recognition.
For the performers, the hope is that the stories stay with children in different ways. As Janaki puts it, each child should be free to take away what speaks to them, whether it is a story, a song, or an idea worth exploring.
When: Saturday, October 10, 2026, from 10 am to 11.30 am
Where: Medai, The Stage, Alwarpet, Chennai
Performers: Janaki Sabesh, Dira Paavai Rajavel and Madhuvanti Badri
Presented by: Lil Trails in collaboration with Aalaap
Registrations: liltrails.com/events/lil-navaratri-2026
For queries: 8344411188