We live in strange times, governed by successive waves of an imperious virus. Even if nothing else seems in our control, preserving our family’s legacy certainly is. Samrata Salwan Diwan, founder of Family Fables Co., promises to make this monumental task easy and approachable through her platform offering bespoke services to record stories in detailed keepsake books.
Bespoke Books by Family Fables Co.
Samrata Salwan Diwan
Diwan grew up listening to riveting stories about her grandparents’ lives— their descriptions of childhood and ancestral homes left across the border; friends and cousins who were their first playmates; and the trauma they faced in being forced to migrate during the partition of India. These stories provided insight into their struggles and triumphs and allowed Diwan a glimpse into what made her who she is.
“Unfortunately, most family stories are lost with time. This prompted me to embark on a passion project to record and preserve my maternal grandmother’s history in 2017. This labour of love led to the launch of Family Fables Co.—a bespoke publishing company that helps individuals, families and institutions document their unique and personal stories in the form of a beautiful book,” she explains.
While attempting to record her own family’s history, Diwan could not find any individual or company who would take on this task from start to finish, while making it a smooth and hassle-free process for the family. Family Fables Co. fills this void through its bespoke publishing services.
Explaining the various elements that go into making a family history book, she says, “Family history includes oral accounts of previous generations, the recounting of one’s ancestry, shared recipes, medical remedies or ‘nuskhas’, photographs, documents, folk songs, family heirlooms and documented family trees. Hence, there are many ways of recording family histories. We made a cookbook for a family whose history we traced through food and preserved recipes shared over decades. In another book, we recorded recipes and remedies of the family in addition to capturing their unique folk Multani songs.”
She further highlights that complete historical accounts must also capture the social and cultural milieu of the time. Through personal anecdotes and stories, one can gather insight into the life and times of the previous generation. Photographs and documents, which include letters, certificates, postcards, and newspaper clippings add to the visual aspect of the narrative.
The final product is a gorgeous keepsake the family is proud of. As Diwan explains, “It’s a book that is proudly displayed on the family table or shelf, as it has been put together with the efforts of family members who take pride in their shared history. Even though we offer digital versions of the book, nothing can replace the experience of the family sitting together and going through a gorgeous book full of personal memories.”
The procedure of compiling is a meticulous and demanding one. Diwan’s team interviews, transcribes, researches, writes, edits and designs the final product. Sometimes they track down and collect information from different parts of the country and the world.
The pandemic affected the work of Family Fables Co., but they overcame the hurdles by shifting the interview process to video calls. Diwan notes that, in a way, the pandemic gave a boost to her work too. She says, “With so much uncertainty around, people have been thinking more about family and their roots. In the last couple of years, we have spent a lot more time at home with our loved ones, which has got many excited about embarking on a project like this. During the pandemic and lockdown, Family Fables Co. has chronicled many incredible family stories. With so many people losing their loved ones, more and more people are relying on storytelling to preserve their memories.”
Some of their noteworthy projects include the illustrated biography of the former Chief Justice of India Justice Y. K. Sabharwal; a book called ‘The Jagatpur Legacy’, where they traced the earliest known ancestor of the family to the First Anglo Sikh war of 1845; and a recent project which was the memoir of Group Captain Himmat Singh Ravubha Gohel to mark his centenary. The last of these was written based on detailed logbooks, hand-written notes, newspaper clippings and photos of when he flew for the British Commonwealth Occupation Forces across Japan and Burma during World War II, airlifted troops and casualties in the 1947-48 Kashmir Operation, and led the nation’s first Republic Day flypast in 1950.
Signing off, Diwan shares, “A memoir makes a great present for a special occasion—a landmark birthday, anniversary or a milestone event with respect to institutional histories. We often get requests to have the book ready in time for these kinds of important events. People can reach out to us on our website www.familyfablescompany.com or through our social media pages to commission a project.”
The writer pens lifestyle articles for various publications and her blog www.nooranandchawla.com. She can be contacted on nooranand@gmail.com.