A nationwide campaign to nurture a love for books and reading among children is gaining momentum with the launch of India Reads Aloud (IRA), an initiative that brings together eminent Indians and everyday citizens to champion joyful reading. The programme, introduced through a short campaign film, seeks to spark a national movement around reading aloud as a powerful response to India’s foundational literacy challenge.
India Reads Aloud is a curated video series of Indian children’s storybooks being read aloud by people from diverse walks of life. The initiative is spearheaded by Bunty Pai, Madhuri Pai and Nayana Pai, the three women behind the Turning Pages Foundation, a non-profit organisation working to build whole-school reading cultures across India. The campaign will be formally launched on January 29, 2026, aligned with World Read Aloud Day week.
The campaign film features several prominent personalities who have lent their voices to the cause, including Viswanathan Anand, India’s world chess champion; veteran film artiste Sharmila Tagore; Shashi Tharoor, Member of Parliament and author; writer and philanthropist Rohini Nilekani; noted playwright Gowri Ramnarayan; film and theatre artiste Padmavati Rao; and author and translator Shobha Tharoor Srinivasan, among others. All participants have contributed on a pro bono basis, driven by a shared belief in the transformative power of reading.
The initiative comes at a time when India faces a well-documented foundational literacy crisis. Despite national emphasis through the National Education Policy 2020 and the NIPUN Bharat Mission, learning assessments indicate that fewer than half of children in Grade 5 can read at a Grade 2 level. Educationists note that the ability to read and the desire to read form a virtuous cycle, making joyful engagement with books essential to meaningful learning.
As of January 2026, India Reads Aloud has already produced 22 professionally filmed read-aloud episodes, with more than 20 additional well-known readers in the pipeline. The content spans Indian stories, languages and lived realities, and is designed for repeated use in homes, classrooms, libraries and digital spaces.
Available on YouTube with updates on social media platforms, the organisers describe the initiative as a long-term movement rather than a one-time campaign. By celebrating Indian stories and voices, they hope to help children across the country discover the simple joy of opening a book—and keep reading for life.
