PW invited parents from Kolkata to share their family bonding activities

“Except during exam season, most evenings are dedicated to spending quality time with our children — Om (class IX) and Odrika (class VI) — and sharing our daily life experiences over a delightful dinner. Time permitting, we also watch a movie together on television. Dinner table conversations foster creativity and strengthen our connections, But the rule is to keep our mobile phones on silent mode. Sundays are reserved for casual conversations and for plotting travel escapades”
— Arundhati Sen, chief strategy & partnership officer, Garbage Free India

“ As the anchor of the Chatterjee family, I am all for bonding over travel and food. With my son Eeshan’s (class XI) knack for art and Tiana’s (class VII) animal obsession, our family vacations are a mix of exploring and devouring. Cooking up a storm together keeps us a tight-knit family, making memories we will cherish forever”
— Sharmistha Goswami Chatterjee, freelance journalist

“Most Saturday evenings are dedicated to family time. My children — Madhuboni (class VI) and Avinibesh (class III) — look forward to Saturday evening family dinners with their grandparents, the attraction being good food and adda . Moreover, their grandfather loves to keep them entertained with unending stories from his childhood which are both intriguing and inspiring. Storytelling unlimited and umpteen life lessons learnt! Watching a film together also brings our family together”
— Debolina Chatterjee, teacher, The Frank Anthony Public School, Kolkata

“Our family is as close-knit as it can get with three similar sounding names — Anandamoy, Nandini and Anandini, our 15-year-old daughter. Family holidays are all about exploring remote lesser-known places where we enjoy bird watching, photography, observing rural life and immersing ourselves in nature. Watching old and new films of all languages and genres together, mostly at home has also strengthened the bond between us. A simple joy that brings colour to our evenings is lounging on the bed and playing word games together” — Nandini Dasgupta, teacher, Modern High School for Girls

Also read: Activities enabling strong family bonding