Daddy-daughter banter

Neelesh Misra with daughter Vaidehi, who is all set to have a podcast titled Vaidehi ki Baatein

Hello, aap kaise hai?"

For many years, we have heard Lucknow-based storyteller Neelesh Misra, 49, say this line in his typical baritone voice on the radio show Yaadon Ka Idiot Box, and his YouTube channel's The Slow Interview.

If you follow him, you would've encountered the bubbly presence of his six-year-old daughter, Vaidehi, and her unique view of the world documented in videos titled Conversations with my daughter. Today, Audible releases a podcast titled Vaidehi ki Baatein starring the father-daughter duo.

Few minutes into our video call, Vaidehi's face pops in from the side of the screen. A wide smile raises her rosy cheeks. She doesn't hesitate to answer our questions, and indulges us with expressive replies.

In 15 episodes, each lasting about 10 minutes, they will engage in a series of conversations about Vaidehi's imaginative, creative and warm world. It's a world of multicoloured giraffes and here, dinosaurs are not extinct. In one episode, Vaidehi talks about the freedom to be able to hug her friends after years of social distancing. In another one, Misra gives her a cue of being in a jungle of jalebis and lets her imagination take over. Their world is a pretty beautiful place to live in. "The idea is to push parents to encourage children to tell stories. It is going back into dadi-nani ki duniya," says the RJ.

Misra plays the role of a listener. "I give her cues and steer the conversation," he says. "Inhi ka show hai." Before each recording, Misra and Vaidehi discuss a topic on hand and then go with the flow. "We've talked about her classmates, and about our recent trip to Bastar. It was just the two of us; my wife couldn't come. Her only concern was who would comb her hair, because she does not trust me with that skill. But, she confidently befriended a lady in the hotel who did her hair every day!"

Vaidehi is a natural in front of the camera and doesn't hesitate to speak her mind. She would accompany her father to recording rooms when she was a mere three-year-old and told him she wanted to record as well. Thinking it a childish whim, Misra indulged her. "Jab yeh red colour hoga, tab recording hoga," she told her dad precociously after taking up a spot at the microphone. "She went on to narrate the story of a child who wanted to buy a dress. What fascinated me was that her story had a beginning, middle and an end," says Misra. That was the beginning of their partnership.

One remarkable early conversation took place while he was driving her to school. "I asked her: ‘Jeevan kya hai?' ‘Kabhi chhav, kabhi upar, kabhi neeche, kabhi dhoop' she chirped. Vaidehi has a unique way of looking at the world."

The podcast is a part of a larger offering Misra is working on. "It's a series of slow podcasts, where we effortlessly push meaningful, purposeful content," he says. Misra believes that we are in an era where parents are not happy with the content their children consume. This project grew out of that need. "Today, parents are being sold the fear that if their child does not learn to code by the age of five, their future will be ruined. As a parent and a communicator, I want to make room for children to be imaginative and hone their cognitive development to make them world leaders."

Not surprisingly, Vaidehi has her own fan following. "She symbolises a certain aspect central to all children and that is a powerful message; we don't attempt to be preachy. This may open up a new audience segment. A positive social impact is the prism of every single thing I do. If Vaidehi and I can encourage parents to let their children play and tell stories and be expressive, it can make a lot of difference," says Misra.

Off camera, the father-daughter duo are "acche dost". "I love to play with mud," she says, "and I can make anything out of it. I love to swim, play tennis and be with my friends. When I was in Bastar, I even chased a hen!"

And what's her favourite thing about her shows? "Papa ke saath baatein karna."

To listen: audible.in