BENGALURU: While youngsters hop, skip and jump to cafes and bars during weekends, a duo in Bengaluru is helping individuals grab a mat and find a quiet reading space in Cubbon Park. A group of bibliophiles called ‘Cubbon Reads’ meets every Saturday between 9 am and 2 pm in the park, to read for five hours. The latest meet saw more than 300 participants and a large number of females, compared to males, taking up the leisure activity.
Shruti Sah and Harsh Snehanshu, two friends who started the initiative, rode to Cubbon Park from Indiranagar on bicycles to find a new place to relax and engage with books in December 2022. Over time, their social media posts started going viral and more like-minded people wanted to join them. “People started texting us if they could join in, and we thought, why not make this a weekly activity,” said Shruti.
The duo started with a group of four or five people, and suddenly, the community grew manifold. While for some, it’s just a space to kill time on a weekend, for young women, the initiative is also a way to reclaim public space in the city and feel empowered.
When TNSE spoke to the young women, most of them said that with a large number of people being part of the event, it kept “judgmental eyes” away. Adhira Menon, a fresh graduate who attended the quiet gathering for the first time, said, “I have grown up in this city but this was a refreshing take on how public spaces could be used. Knowing that I am surrounded by other young people and no one to stare at me, felt relaxing.” She added that she could lie down on the grass and read her book without anyone questioning her, or the guards whistling at her actions.
Another woman, who found out about the group through social media, had just finished her shift at a nearby hospital and decided to spend some time reading at the park. Dr Raajeshwari P said, “Usually, if you’re reading in public, people pass comments such as ‘Why don’t you read at home?’ or purposely try and have a conversation with you, but here it didn’t feel like an obligation.” She added that reading below huge trees and in the cool breeze is a bonus.
Some of the women said Bengaluru has very few places where one can just sit and do nothing, without being constantly conscious of who is watching, or knowing they are being judged for their clothes. “Activities such as these make the city more inclusive and comfortable,” said Dilber Pandher. She added that seeing more women do the same thing “made all the difference”.
“Men have the privilege to sit around anywhere and no one says anything, but the minute they see a woman doing the same, everyone starts staring. This space helps make public places safer for young girls,” said Shruti. In a way, it’s empowering for girls who need not shy away from owning their space.
Shruti and Harsh started the community for the love of books, and it grew organically and means different things to different individuals. The initiative aims to make reading a public affair, and encourage more youngsters to be a part of it. The group will be expanding in areas such as HSR Layout, Lalbagh, Whitefield and Yelahanka, and finalising different parks to build a community there.
The community offers a space for artists as well. Individuals get their easels and canvases too, and paint, draw and write, while enjoying a breath of fresh air.
“We plan to start the ‘Lalbagh Reads’ chapter on Sundays. Many people work on Saturdays so we thought, why not start the same initiative in another location?” said Harsh.
The duo explained that they wanted the idea of the community to remain the same: “a place where you can sit and read comfortably in silence”. Harsh said, “We have been approached by many brands for promotion, but we don’t want to commercialise it. The community will lose its essence.”
Given that the monsoon will soon be arriving in the city, community reading will move online for a brief period, and the group will ask participants to post a story of themselves reading, to build a sense of bonding while enjoying their favourite reads from cozy corners of their homes.