"Are there Bun Shops in the Jungles of India?
and Other Secret Stories from Indian History"
Children's Book Illustration and Cover Design
"Are there Bun Shops in the Jungles of India? and Other Secret Stories from Indian History" by Nandini Nayar, Illustrated by Damini Gupta, 2023
"Are there Bun Shops in the Jungles of India" written by Nandini Nayar and published by Hachette India is a children's book that describes, through a series of letters, the plight of the wild animals that were carted over from India to be displayed in the 'menageries' or early zoos of London in the 1800s. I had the pleasure of illustrating the cover and inside illustrations for the book, as well as for the second part of the series "A Sailor called Wet Paint". Many thanks to my fabulous Art Director, Vatsala Kaul Banerjee!
Cover Design
Brief
The cover design for this book required that caged wild animals be depicted, while not veering towards something gory or unpleasant, as the target audience was children. The other themes that could possible be included were that of vintage motifs, jungles, an old London skyline and torn jungle-themed wallpaper.
I created these four rough drafts as initial composition ideas
After some discussion, the third option was selected by the art director and the writer–and after a few tweaks, it was coloured in and polished up using Procreate for iPad.
A few typography options and colours were also given, before we settled for something simpler.
Finally, the back cover and spine were illustrated and designed, with the final cover being put together on Adobe Indesign.
The Final Cover!
Inner Illustrations
A series of black and white illustrations were also commissioned by the publisher, in order to bring each individual story to life. These were created using reference images of wildlife and old illustrations from menageries in London.
The illustrations included everything from big cats to baskets of bread.
The illustrations as featured in the final book.
The final book came together wonderfully, and has been successfully selling in bookstores across the country, along with its companion book "A Sailor called Wet Paint".
Thanks for viewing my work!
