குக்கூ குழந்தைகள் வெளி ( Cuckoo Movement for Children)

27/04/2026

17/04/2026

நான் எடுக்கும் நிலை, அடிப்படையில் சரியாக இருக்குமானால்...

யார் என்னை ஆதரித்து பேசினால் என்ன?
யார் என்னை எதிர்த்துப் பேசினால் என்ன?
நமக்குத் தெரிந்தவரை நமது கடமையை நானும் நீங்களும் சிறந்த முறையில் நிறைவேற்றி விட்டு மலர்ந்த முகத்துடன் இயங்க வேண்டும்.

- மகாத்மா காந்தி 16/08/1947

12/04/2026

Cinema, when watched with attention and openness, becomes more than entertainment. It turns into a space for learning. A thoughtfully made film can feel like a living classroom, inviting us to enter unfamiliar worlds and understand lives different from our own.

When learners engage with cinema, they interpret, compare, and reflect. Watching a film then becomes an act of participation rather than passive viewing. It encourages critical thinking, deepens emotional understanding, and nurtures the ability to notice subtle human experiences; qualities essential to meaningful education.

Educational cinema also widens the learner’s horizon. A single film can take viewers across continents, languages, and social realities. Such exposure naturally builds empathy and reduces the distance between the “self” and the “other.”

As Majid Majidi says, “A story told from a kid’s perspective is more beautiful and appealing.” This insight points to something deeper. Childhood perception often carries a clarity that reveals essential human values without complication. When cinema adopts this perspective, it becomes especially powerful as “an educational medium.”

Cinema also brings together many forms of knowledge; visual composition, music, storytelling, and performance. This reflects real-life learning, where understanding rarely belongs to one subject alone. Through films, students intuitively grasp history through costume and setting, geography through landscapes, and psychology through character and emotion. In this way, cinema becomes an organic medium for learning.

It is in this spirit, that this gathering is dedicated to educational cinema.

You are warmly invited to Unframed: A Film Festival on Education, a special screening that brings together films from different parts of the world, each exploring children’s educational journeys and lived experiences. The festival will be held on April 17, 18, and 19 at Cuckoo Forest School, offering a thoughtful opportunity to engage with cinema as a tool for learning.

We look forward to having you.

Click here to register
https://cuckoochildren.in/unframed/


Poster Design: Thiagarajan

07/04/2026

We had the honour of hosting the Erode Collector, Thiru S. Kandasamy, IAS, at our Cuckoo land a month ago. During his visit, we had the opportunity to present the work that has been steadily coming into being here. We engaged in a thoughtful and constructive dialogue on our work plans, during which he affirmed the possibility of working together towards the education of tribal children. His visit has left us with reflective insights.

Photographs: Mohan Nithila

03/04/2026

Along the coastal edges of the Andaman Islands—where forests lean into the sea—lives an indigenous people known as the Jarawa. For a young boy of this land, who belonged as much to the forest as to the shore, the world was not something distant to be understood—it was something he was already a part of. The forest, the coastline, and the great waves that arrived, again and again, seeking the land—these were not just surroundings but his world.

The sea, ever-changing with season and terrain—the shape of its waves, the touch of their movement, the storms that gathered within them, the fish that traveled in their depths—everything, from the smallest flicker of life to the vast breathing body of water, he came to know. Not through lessons but through nearness. By walking behind his elders. By watching. By listening to what is never spoken.

Like a tree that does not learn the light, but grows toward it, this knowing did not remain as knowledge within him. It became his body, his instinct and his way of being. And slowly without announcement, he came to stand as a kind of living awareness—holding within him the quiet intelligence of his people.

Time passed and years later, in the name of “upliftment,” in the language of progress, institutions began to arrive. They came with care, with intent—seeking to improve lives, to bring education, to reshape futures. Some children from the coast were chosen, taken into classrooms and placed within a system. And the boy from the Jarawa tribe was one among them.

But there, he could not follow. He could not hold what was being given. Because the sea—the one that had taught him everything—could not enter the classroom with him. Up untill now he had learned by doing, by being, by dissolving into his surroundings. And now, everything placed before him—beginning with language itself—belonged to a world he had never inhabited.

What he could not understand, he could not become.
And slowly, something within him began to recede. A quiet confusion and heaviness swallowed him from within. And in the final records, it was written that he was "Slow and that he had Difficulty in learning and that he could possibly have Cognitive Impairment".

And he was sent back. To the same shore, To the same sea.
But not to his same self. Because now he was carrying a question he had never known before—
Is something wrong with me?

As he was walking along the shore one day, pondering on these questions that he had never known hitherto, came a little girl from the tribe running towards him. She held his hand and said:
“My grandfather told me… you know everything about the sea, about the colourfull fishes that live there. I want to know them like you. Will you teach me too?”
And led him away.
—
This is an important story that was shared at the Naitalim gathering—one among many such stories that unfolded there. Stories that did not instruct or argue, but revealed. They spoke of education and need to start imbibing a change within the present system of learning.

From Neelkanth Chhaya of CEPT University, to Sushma Tai, Reji Thomas, Jayabharathi, Vijayalakshmi, Kumaran, Rithi, Rahul, Kathy Vinod, Anburaj, Matheswaran, Mansi Anand—and many others— spoke from experience and the learnings that they have acquired throughout their lives and journey that they have walked.

Each one of their lectures carried a fragment of something lived. Something seen and deeply known. And we are very glad in sharing with you all that these lectures and experiences is soon to be compiled and published in the form of a book. The faith and the strength these stories and the personalities that have come in confluence to this gathering have given us instills a great responsibility within our hearts.

And we happily announce to you all that this Naitalim Gathering will be held at regular intervals across various landscapes throughout India with many such intellectuals and personalities coming together holding different stories and experiences to guide us through. Details of the next gathering will be shared soon.

A seed becoming a forest does not begin with an announcement. But rather it begins in stillness. It starts quietly, between rocks, amidst resistance in the the dark of the soil, it roots and grows unseen without witness. Yet over time, it stands to hold an entire world within it.

Again and again, We feel this gathering in our hearts as such a seed that stands to hold a forest within. And we forward with a quiet certainty that years from now perhaps even decades later, what was held here, the things that were spoken here will come to be significant in the history of education that this country has seen. And with that faith we continue...

Photos by Mohan Tanisk, Arwin, Kumaran...

To see more on this event, click the first link in the comment.

26/03/2026

Cuckoo Naitalim Gathering

“ When a potter sets out to create a vessel, it is not the clay that moves first, but the wheel. The turning of the wheel is what gathers the formless clay and guides it toward shape.

In the same way, long before worlds were born, clouds of dust and gas circled around an unseen center. That cosmic turning slowly drew inward, and from the inward gathering emerged the planets, the stars, and the existence itself. As the wheel turns, the potter draws the clay inwards, allowing the clay to gain balance and slowly take shape.

In the vastness of space, tiny rocks and fine grains of cosmic dust were drawn toward one another, slowly uniting to become a larger celestial body. Science describes this process as “accretion”, the steady gathering of scattered particles into wholeness. As the potter’s wheel spins, the potter shapes the clay with his hands, and the clay slowly transforms into a rounded vessel. Likewise in the universe, when matter comes together, gravity pulls it evenly from every direction, slowly shaping it into a sphere. From such a process, the Earth we call home was born.

Children…just as the clay on a potter’s wheel slowly comes together and turns into a pot, the dust and stones in space also slowly joined together and became the Earth we live on today. “

Thus, as part of the experimental efforts for the Nai Talim school at Wardha, a village potter was invited into the school by one of its teachers. In front of the students, he was asked to make a clay pot. As the potter shaped the pot, using that as an example, he conducted a geography lesson. Having witnessed this in person and feeling deeply moved, Gandhi wrote a letter to the school:

“This is the education I had envisioned. We must attempt to cultivate such methods of experiential learning, where knowledge springs from life and from art. If one asks who the teachers in this school are, I would not point only to those within the classroom. The farmer in the field, the potter at the wheel, the weaver at the loom, each of them is a teacher here.”

Against the moral ruin that the two World Wars unleashed upon humanity; wars made possible by weapons born of knowledge without compassion; Gandhi sought to sow, in the soil of India, an education centered on the human heart. He believed that such an education could help build a self-reliant nation, filled with men and women of conviction who would learn to act for themselves and for their fellow human beings.

The world still trembles from the horror that rained down on Iranian schools, taking the lives of hundreds of children. Before that pain even begins to fade, we must make a decision. In our lifetime, it is our sacred duty to create as many schools of peace as we can, where no child ever has to live in fear again.

Since the Cuckoo movement for Children began, small experiments in Nai Talim education have been steadily taking place. As part of this ongoing effort, a Nai Talim educational gathering will be held on March 27, 28, and 29. Many distinguished Indian educational thinkers and mentors participate in this gathering, below is a list of mentors and thinkers who will be present at this gathering to share their experience and insights on education.

~
In presence of

Neelkanth Chhaya
He was faculty at School of Architecture at CEPT and other design schools and he retired as the Dean in 2013 and continues to guide the students till today, both in academic and non academics. He has been an Adjunct Faculty at Srishti Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Bangalore, since 2015, and holds the UNESCO Chair in Heritage, Sustainability and Livelihoods at Srishti. He has served on Academic Councils and Boards of Studies at several institutions.

Sushama Thai
Sushma Sharma is a social activist and teacher who is confident about this because she has worked with the Naitalim philosophy developed by Mahatma Gandhi. She is currently principal of the school being run by the Naitalim Samiti at Sevagram Ashram (Wardha), which was Gandhi’s last home.

Reji Thomas
Interdisciplinary scholar and consultant with three decades of experience in sustainable development, decentralized planning, rural industrialization, and environmental assessment. Trained at IIT Bombay and Gandhigram Rural University, with extensive academic, research, and entrepreneurial contributions.

Jayabharathi
Jayabharathi amma has been managing Siddhartha Matriculation Higher Secondary School since 1987. In her 37 years of educational activities, she has introduced many innovative ideas and created an alternative educational environment. She is emphasizing an education system that emphasizes human values along with grades-based education. She is introducing many events to the students to enhance the multifaceted views of the children.

Vijayalakshmi
Viji, an art teacher believes that Krishnamurti’s teachings act as a mirror in which one can comprehend ourselves and the complex movement of fears, sorrows, desires and loneliness, which are indeed common to all mankind. These teachings are not a guide, a set of ideals or a framework; to any particular way of living; they do not offer a technique or method to free oneself of psychological misery. They are not an abstract philosophical system. She is also part of Shibumi which is not a community that one joins. It is a coming together of individuals, in the spirit of freedom and cooperation, in the movement of self knowing through dialogue and observation.

Kumaran
Kumaran, a prominent teacher at Shibumi, which is a learning centre for adults and young people. It offers a space where, through dialogue, one understands oneself and relationships in the light of Krishnamurti’s teachings. Shibumi offers a learning environment where they can grow and flower in goodness. Kumaran teaches Mathematics for senior school.

Ridhi Aggarwal
Ridhi has 4 years of corporate and 2 years of teaching experience before Swatantra Talim. Her focus points are strategy, curriculum, and training. Before Swatantra Talim, she worked in corporates, NGOs, and schools like Times of India, Edelweiss Capital, Nalanda (Lucknow), and Sahyadri School (Krishnamurthi Foundation India). She is also an avid storyteller and an origami lover. Ridhi has been instrumental in co-creating maker-spaces in public, private schools and non-formal learning centers.

Rahul Agarwal
Rahul, a qualified CA, is the other co-founder of Swatantra Talim. Actively engaged in monitoring and evaluation of our program by looking closely the gaps in terms of delivery, he has been instrumental in devising the organisation’s strategy, curriculum, implementation and performance monitoring. Currently pursuing a Masters in Design Education from Srishti Manipal Institute of Art, Design and Technology, Bangalore, he also holds an MA in Elementary Education from TISS, Mumbai. Prior to Swatantra Talim, he did a stint in Sahyadri School, Pune (KFI India) as a bursar-cum-teacher.

Khyathi Vinod
Khyati is a creative practitioner working at the intersection of craft, pedagogy, and community knowledge systems. Over the past seven years with Khamir through the Sugri Shala initiative, she has developed craft-integrated approaches grounded in local contexts. She is also a core member of Living Lightly ~ Journeys with Pastoralists, a travelling exhibition that traces the life worlds of nomadic pastoralist communities in India.

Anburaj
Anburaj is known as an honest man who traveled a path of deviation in his youth, then recovered from it, returned without any hesitation, and set his life in the right direction. His life, in which he was convicted of serious crimes, sentenced to prison by the law, released from prison, and engaged in social activities, inspires hope in every person who knows him. He has been involved in the forest-based lifestyle since childhood.

Mansi Anand
Mansi Anand is the Education Lead at Khamir, where she works at the intersection of craft, pedagogy, and community knowledge systems. She worked with Kutch Nav Nirman Abhiyan, a network of grassroots organizations, during which Khamir was initiated in the aftermath of the Gujarat earthquake, marking her early connection to the organization. She also has experience as a journalist covering human interest and research-based stories.

Madheswaran
The founder of the Kalaithai Foundation—a veteran master who is someone unaware of reading and writing. For over forty years he has dedicated himself to reviving Tamil traditional arts, training the younger generation, molding them into teachers, and guiding them to travel across various parts of Tamil Nadu to carry out this work.

~

Education that cultivates patience can provide us with the mental maturity to act for the redemption of the humble and for the welfare of all. For humanity, which has grown increasingly consumerist, strayed from nature, been ravaged by wars, and is beginning to squander the remainder of life in sickness and decay, education must instill self-awareness, inner freedom, compassion, and empathy. In this context, ‘Nai Talim’ is the seed that has sprouted in our soil, as a form of education capable of nurturing these very qualities.

Through this simple educational dialogue, we will pose some fundamental questions to ourselves in the present time; one day, in the course of history, our search may become the search of society itself. As Gandhi remarked, “By education, I mean an all-round drawing out of the best in child and man - body, mind and spirit.” This statement reminds us that the true center of education is the inner unfolding of the child. The Nai Talim approach places its primary focus on transforming education into a “Active Learning” that integrates the child’s imagination, self-reflection, emotional awareness, and social experience.

When Rabindranath Tagore designed the new education at Shanti Niketan, with art as its foundation, he wrote: “The highest education is that which does not merely give us information but makes our life in harmony with all existence.”This profound idea forms the very spirit of this educational gathering.

Therefore, we may define this gathering as an opportunity to reflect once again on the path that connects education with life itself.

Missiles are falling on the far side of the Earth, and children are dying. Refugees wander the land and suffer in camps. Today’s world is wounded by wars, violence, and divisions. In such a condition of despair, education is not merely the transfer of knowledge; it becomes a political act with the power to propagate peace. Foreseeing this, the educator Maria Montessori wrote, “Establishing lasting peace is the work of education; all politics can do is keep us out of war.” Only if children, from a young age, learn to practice compassion, non-violence, and sharing can humanity preserve the empathy and kindness it is in danger of losing.

The gathering, which will be held on March 27th at Cuckoo Forest School, on the 28th at Lakshmana Iyya Hostel in Gobichettipalayam, Erode, and on the 29th at the Nurpu Handloom Weaving School in Chennimalai, will highlight the possibilities of holistic education in the Indian context. It will showcase approaches that treat education as a tool for uplifting society, and reveal the broad vision of seeing education as a means to cultivate the determination to live in harmony with all beings without causing them harm. May the life experiences shared by the mentors pour into our educational vision as a living force, igniting a glowing ember that rises within us.

அருட்பெருஞ்சோதி…
அருட்பெருஞ்சோதி…
தனிப்பெருங்கருணை…

To be a part of this gathering, Kindly register here.
https://cuckoochildren.in/naitalimgathering/

25/02/2026

செவ்வணக்கம்

14/02/2026

"I came to this land thinking I would volunteer for just four days. But this place has a quiet pull. An aura that one can’t explain but only feel. That’s how four days slowly turned into ten. The people here don’t feel like volunteers they feel like family. Each person has their own way of inspiring, and that is something I’ll always carry with me. Something inside me shifted too. I may not know how to describe it right away, but I know it will guide me in the right way.

To me, Cuckoo is not an NGO. It’s a family and I’m grateful I got to be a small part of it. Thank you for this chance."
~volunteer from December

~~~~~~~~~~

Cuckoo Forest School is seeking volunteers for its ongoing activities in the land.
Minimum three days of your choice from 01st to 30th March 2026

Contact: +91 82702 22007
Registration: cuckoochildren.in/volunteering

https://www.instagram.com/p/DUs_vSrjLpi/?igsh=Mm9tbHo0cDN2dW1r

06/02/2026

"The first principle of true teaching is that nothing can be taught The teacher is not an instructor or taskmaster, he is a helper and a guide. His business is to suggest and not to impose. He does not actually train the pupil's mind, he only shows him how to perfect his instruments of knowledge and helps and encourages him in the process. He does not impart knowledge to him, he shows him how to acquire knowledge for himself. He does not call forth the knowledge that is within; he only shows him where it lies and how it can be habituated to rise to the surface. The distinction that reserves this principle for the teaching of adolescent and adult minds and denies its application to the child, is a conservative and unintelligent doc-trine."

The intent of the fellowship is to deepen one’s awareness of self and of learning. Such will illumine their relationship and interactions with children, as well as the teaching and learning process itself. Through the fellowship, an integral and holistic framework of learning will be developed, which rather than being prescriptive, will instead respond to the needs of each child. We intend to develop a pedagogy of learning through the lived experience of being with children in rural villages across India. The fellowship would dwell into understanding the existing needs of children and preparing pedagogies pertaining to each one of them based on their needs, towards Naitalim.

Preferred Age Group: 18-36 years.

Fluency in speaking Tamil is preferred.

For more details and application: cuckoochildren.in/naitalimfellowship
Contact: +91 82702 22007