It was on March 19 this year, when we decided to close our office and bookstore at the iconic Book Building in Chennai, that the realisatio...
It was on March 19 this year, when we decided to close our office and bookstore at the iconic Book Building in Chennai, that the realisation actually hit home – we were literally shutting shop.
Until then, as news of the pandemic came in, we weren’t able to get a clear sense of what was happening or exactly where we were headed. “Let’s work from home for the time being,” was the thinking, “until the situation sorts itself out.” It seemed possible to keep ticking over somehow, provided everyone had access to a computer and a mobile phone. We were basically biding our time, not getting too much done, but not overly stressed about it either.
Tara Books is a small team of 12 people, and the publishing company is owned jointly by the group of people that runs it. As a collective of writers, designers and book-makers – we generate most of our titles in house – we function more like a creative studio than a conventional publisher. We enjoy playing with the form of the book, and also run a book-making workshop which employs 22 skilled artisans who produce our signature handmade titles.
Working together is crucial
Our way of publishing is innately collaborative –...
