Congratulations Saee Pagar on winning the book cover contest for 'People Called Shillong'. We are so glad that your design has been selected as a book cover for our new series.

Here is what Saee has to say about her design concept:

" The very first idea that struck me when I had to think of something that represents people of a particular place is the outfit. Because it is very peculiar to a place or a tribe and works as identity. This is when I started reading about the Khasi tribe as well. Also, I tried to think about the people whose stories were a part of the book - stories of common people like you and me. Maybe, of a traditional woman! Her casual and daily wear. I rejected the idea of using the traditional festive yellow/ golden clothing - which a lot of people instantly think of. A peculiar clothing that would help us identify the tribe is the shawl. Secondly, the way the two women stand. People tend to make conclusions when they understand the content on the cover completely and as for the sketch of a human the only thing that would allow a viewer to get to know the expression is the eyes. So I planned on having the two ladies face their back - where you cannot figure out if the image is staged or they are walking to work. You cannot see their expressions and so it arouses curiosity. Basically the women walking away is a journey ahead towards actually reading and unveiling the stories inside. "