Raising kids in a foreign land can be challenging, especially around times of celebration back home. On today's episode, we talk to Ajanta Chakraborty and Vivek Kumar about tips for raising multicultural children, the power of stories, and the upcoming festival of Diwali. Ajanta and Vivek are a married couple and co-authors of Maya & Neel's India Adventure Series, a series of 15 children's books that make South Asian culture more accessible and fun for them. Their book "Let's Celebrate 5 Days of Diwali!" is a great gift for kids of all backgrounds as we head into Diwali season.

🍿 WHERE TO WATCH THIS EPISODE: https://youtu.be/MCgDVtk_4QM

🔗 HELPFUL RESOURCES
📚 Full series of Maya & Neel’s India Adventure Series books: https://www.bollygroove.com/books/
🌐 Free cultural resources: https://bollygroove.com/free 
🧒🏾 Raising multicultural kids Facebook group including free monthly workshops: https://www.facebook.com/groups/RaiseMulticulturalKids
👩🏽‍💻 Apna Ghar organization fighting to end gender violence: https://www.apnaghar.org/

📚 AJANTA'S RECOMMENDED STARTER BOOKS (IN ORDER)
📕 Let’s Celebrate 5 Days of Diwali! https://a.co/d/asaQG47
📙 Let’s Celebrate Holi! https://a.co/d/4yFJfdC
📘 Diwali 50 Activity Book: https://a.co/d/8ctkl3F
📗 Let’s Learn About Ramayana: The Story of Diwali: https://a.co/d/9r2lc0u

👋🏽 CONNECT WITH US:
📷 Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/chaiacrossgenerations
📧 Email - [email protected]

🙋🏽‍♂️WHO ARE WE?:
Hi! We are friends a generation apart who explore a new topic each week to better understand - and maybe even bridge - the gap between generations. We want to help people feel seen and heard in their experiences and to create greater understanding between our listeners and their loved ones.

⏱️ TIMESTAMPS:
00:00 Opening thoughts
02:24 Journey to begin writing the book series for kids
05:52 What inspired you to start writing these books?
10:05 Reception from kids and parents to the books
12:56 What have you learned about raising multicultural kids?
17:15 Tips for parents raising multicultural kids
20:48 Becoming curious about other cultures
23:24 What has it been like raising a multicultural kid?
26:36 Describing Diwali to someone who hasn’t heard about it before
29:39 Audience reception to the Diwali book and the importance of representation
36:27 What’s the biggest thing you’ve learned from another generation?
38:50 Supporting Apna Gar and closing thoughts