It’s not easy to find toys & puzzles for kids that are age-appropriate. And it’s almost impossible to find toys that are educational in nature, most toys are just plastic turned into guns or dolls. Shalinee Ghosh & Krishna Kumar, like so many Indian parents, struggled to locate activities for their preschoolers that had a link to the folk art of India or educate them well.
Folk Art Is The New Cool
Designing travel guides was Shalinee’s first step after graduating from the National Institute of Design. She and Krishna Kumar, both ardent travellers, believed that the market for trinkets from India was severely underserved.
“We began producing gifts for tourists, goods that convey a tale about the nation and its people”.
They chose the name Froggmag for their business since their first goal was to produce fridge magnets, as frogs have a tendency to attach to things, they decided to combine frogs with magnets and title the product “FroggMag.” Frogmmag is a colourful happy startup that highlighted the beauty of the Indian art forms and appreciates the joy of indian roots at their best.
They started with fridge magnets that featured the Taj Mahal & Amber Fort as well as pictures of buildings in Goa, Khajuraho, & Delhi before moving on to investigate Indian folk art traditions and textile designs like Kalamkari and Baluchari. Their products were extremely loved and cherished by all tourists.
Initially, it was just a colourful store of souvenirs but they felt a need to expand it and promote Indian folk art in a more general and easy-to-accept manner.
They decided to build their own goods, such as jigsaw puzzles and memory games, based on various Indian art traditions when they saw that there was very little available for parents who wished to assist their children to discover India’s great treasure of folk arts, says Shalinee.
Folk Art Made Fun For Kids
The pair wanted games that would appeal to kids of various ages as well as adults, & so they got their hands working on it. They introduced games, jigsaw puzzles, dominoes, and activity boxes with Indian folk art and tradition ten years ago under the brand name FroggMag.
“We asked designers to make designs for us. These assist kids in developing their motor skills and discovering their artistic heritage. Parents may educate their children about folk art, the narrative it depicts, and the artist’s own style.
Their jigsaw riddles are inspired by several Indian artistic traditions, including mural painting, Madhubani Kalighat pat, the tribal artwork of the Gonds & Bhils, Pattachitra, Mughal miniatures, Warli Thanka Nakashi, Pichwai, and many other folk arts of India.
With the help of Shalinee Ghosh & Krishna Kumar’s distinctive children’s toys and activities, which proudly convey a tale of India & her people, you can teach your kids about India and its proud heritage in a fun manner. Undertake a Madhubani puzzle, sketch a Pichwai butterfly or replicate a Gond picture. You’ll love what you buy from Frogmmag, we assure you this.
The company now sells scarves, jewelry, gifts, home décor, and accessories. The games & puzzles they design for kids, which now include other exclusive collections for the Museum Of natural history in Delhi and the Reitberg Museums in Zurich, are unquestionably their USP. The folk art of India is so amazing & rich that you can go glittery eyes with just a look at them, Indian art is not just classic it is filled with scientific reason & many individuals are working day in and out in creating a good place for the different art forms, just like this Farmer- who Created Art Out Of Desi Cow Dung – He Has The Best Way To Add Nature To Your Lifestyle
Know More About The Concept
Mix-and-match memory games are the most popular options for parents. There are eight sets of cards in each category, featuring images of Pattachitra animals, and Varanasi wooden birds. Finding pairings of cards is a need for the variety of games, which are all based on Indian art traditions and are created for everyone from preschoolers to teens and adults. So, if you’re interested in architecture, choose a building with 36 pairs of windows that are inspired by Goan window patterns. Alternately, use 36 pairs of Mughal tiny flowers to play a game of memory.
Some jigsaw riddles are based on Indian aesthetics, while Shalinee was inspired to create puzzles from some intriguing artwork. For instance, she found the face painting created by Kerala’s Theyyam artisans to be fascinating.
Therefore, they took their pictures and had 63-piece jigsaw puzzles made out of them. The puzzles, like two-piece & four-piece puzzles, are made for little hands and have larger, fewer components.
A nicely recreated Phad or Thanka painting might be framed for your house once you’ve managed to fit the parts together through matching shapes & colours. Or elephants and deer from Bhil for your child’s room.
The somewhat larger magnetic puzzles with images of a Gond peacock, a Bhil butterfly, or a Madhubani fish can become a great picnic game for you. Children may learn about colours and forms, and maybe even create their own animal stories in addition to the folk art form. The options are endless on your plate at Frogmmag
Indians are passionate about art but not all have the guts to embrace art in their everyday busy lives, yet some struggle with the odds and follow their heart. Folk Dancer Padma Shree Ramchandra Manjhi Was Once Called A Shame To The Society, is a great example of passion meeting perseverance. Just like Padma Shree Ramchandra Manjhi, Frogmmag is determined to provide a stage for the art forms of India.
Feature Image – Facebook
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I don’t think the title of your article matches the content lol. Just kidding, mainly because I had some doubts after reading the article.