As an adult, when he grew tired of his sales job, it was paper craft that came to his rescue. Watching him work with a piece of paper is a delight in itself. A nick here, a cut there, some rapid movements with the scissors, a quick fold here and there and hey presto! you have the smiling visage of Lord Ganesha or a dancing doll. Then again, it could turn out to be a cube, boat or lamp shade!

About eight years ago he chucked up his lucrative job and began paying attention to his passion. Paper he feels can be used to teach children maths and science in a fun way. As craft material it comes cheap. Any old newspaper can be saved and will do the trick. Children enjoy cutting and folding paper during his workshops and end up imbibing scientific principles and mathematical concepts. They begin to look at Maths as a fun subject rather than with dread.

Arun Desai runs Chitte, an art, craft and science cafe for children at his home in Girinagar, Bangalore. Children are taught aero modelling, origami, kirigami, puppetry, clay modelling, drawing and painting, astronomy etc at Chitte. Chitte has a large number of stimulating 'learn-by-doing’ activities to enhance the creativity and scientific temper in children. It offers a variety of weekend and ongoing classes tailored to suit diverse interests. Those interested can contact Arun Desai on 9845851800 and 26740187. Address: 44, 11th Cross, Girinagar 3rd Phase, BSK 3rd Stage, Bangalore 85.