Call for making Urdu content available for sake of younger generation

During an interactive and engaging session at the 14th Karachi Literature Festival on Saturday, Peek Freans Gluco launched its much-awaited book of nursery rhymes ‘Gluco Kahani’, along with singer and songwriter Bilal Maqsood.

The Gluco Kahani platform was created in collaboration with Maqsood with the inspiration to create Urdu rhymes for children. Since its premiere in March 2022, the initiative has received a phenomenal response, racking up over 22 million views and 95 million impressions on YouTube, and over 15 million impressions on Facebook.

Gluco Kahani aims to be the vehicle that attracts children to view content in our native language using easy-to-understand rhymes that help children build vocabulary.

“We wanted to show that nourishment can be fun, entertaining and memorable. This belief led us on the journey of making learning Urdu fun,” English Biscuit Manufacturers (EBM) Executive Director Shahzain Munir said in a statement.

“We saw the opportunity to convert the rhymes into a book format to help inculcate the habit of reading in Urdu in a way that both parents and children will enjoy.”

Peek Freans Gluco is a generational brand, having been trusted by mothers for over 30 years as being the first biscuit for their children that provides wholesome nourishment.

To keep strengthening the bond with its consumers, the same stories and rhymes have been made available in book form to allow children to see the fun side of our beautiful language with lovable Gluco characters.

The stories are designed to help parents engage and laugh with their children as they learn counting in Urdu with Haathi, run along the jungle with Khargosh and learn the power of helping others with Chirya. A QR code on each page links with online video and content.

When asked about his views on the project, Maqsood said that this was a dream project for him. “I partnered with Peek Freans Gluco of EBM to compose, write and sing nine original Urdu nursery rhymes for children to play my part in giving our children something to hold on to while growing up — something that’ll keep them connected to their language and cultural values without losing the element of learning with fun.”

The session ended on the note that various elements of society must work in tandem to ensure the availability and proper distribution of Urdu content for the sake of our younger generation.