Bubbly Minds
As far as origin stories go, the tale of Parabelle Studios is at first glance a cute one. You would however, be quite amiss for judging this group of creatives by that cover alone. This is because despite the artwork of their first published book obviously having a stronger appeal to a young female audience (it gave me Little Mermaid kind of vibes) – not only is the nature of the story one of relevance to all Bruneians, but Parabelle’s overarching goal is an admirable one.
After taking the time to pop the many titular bubbles floating around the heads of Parabelle themselves, it becomes evidently clear that the group’s founder, Tina Afiqah, is a lady with a plan. Backed up by Sarah Halim, Azra Hasnan, and Dayah Azhar – who all round off this solid roster of girl power in their roles as writers, artists, animators, and musicians – this is a grouping with the potential to boost reading culture in Brunei. A bookworm with a love of everything Disney, Tina spent many years living in New Zealand, the UK, and South Korea before returning to Brunei. Rediscovering her heritage, she enjoyed learning about the myriad array of myths, legends, and folklore associated with the diverse cultures populating the island. She did not enjoy the realisation that the stories forming the essence of Dayak tribal groups in Brunei such as the Iban, Dusun and Murut for example, were either not being appreciated to the degree they should be, or were being disregarded entirely altogether
by the younger generation. Enter ‘The Bubble Princess and The Stone Heart’, a modern-day retelling of two 16th Century folklore tales known as ‘Lela Mencanai and Jong Batu’. Presented in a hip, new light to captivate the younger generation, what was once viewed by kids as ‘one of those boring tales grandpa used to tell us’, is transformed into a story of adventure that reignites a proud appreciation of their cultural history. With their first batch of 400 books completely sold out, Parabelle has begun collaborating with the Jerudong International School to turn the story into a musical by 2023. Its second book, ‘Bubbly Thoughts of the Stone Hearted’, covers poetry, peribahasa, and quotes, and interestingly material was contributed by 14 writing advocates who were fans of the first book. Already, Tina
is rewriting the entire story so she can present it as a second edition because you know, perfectionists need to do perfectionist things. With a ‘Frog beneath the Shell’ children’s book launched, and illustrator Azra currently working on a book for the studio too, Parabelle is certainly keeping themselves busy. With 50% of their sales going to the Paws Up Centre for helping strays, Parabelle earns major biG brownie points with us. •• IG: @Parabelle.studios
Borneo.Insider’s.Guide
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