Theatre artiste uses mythology to teach aeronautics online

Icarus became overwhelmed by his youthful enthusiasm and disregarded his father’s instructions. He began to fly high, resulting in the melting of the wings’ wax and causing him to plummet into the sea and drown. If you connect this aspect to flight controls, you will understand how a pilot can control flight.

This is what theatre actorturned entrepreneur Jagadeesh Kanna has been doing through his initiative Vaayusastra.He explains aeronautics through Indian, Greek and other mythological and sci-fiction stories. “Usually, we organise workshops once a month for children. But now, we have shifted our classes online. Instead of just comparing popular mythological stories and science, this time, I have dwelled deep into various mythologies. It was a revelation for me - I found a lot of interesting connections between mythology and advanced technology. The classes are specially designed for children between the age group of 8 and 14 because they are more involved in science,” says Jagadeesh.

Apart from Indian and Greek mythologies, the 30-year-old is collecting stories from other religious and cultural traditions. “This is an alternative education method that makes the study of aeronautics easier. In Ramayana, Vijaya Dhanush is considered as the divine weapon of the great warrior Karna. The weapon had all the properties of a motion detector. Instead of teaching students the technical terms of a motion detector, if you explain it to them through the story, it will register in their minds. I feel that our education system should include more innovative methods to make learning more easier,” he adds.