In a world bombarded with images, it is difficult to imagine the humble beginnings of motion picture. And it's more so for kids, far removed from the world of black-and-white films or even Doordarshan, whose sources of entertainment include sleek tablets and cellphones that show no trace of the evolution. "But when it comes to raising awareness on the preservation [of our cinematic heritage], we need to start early," says Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, filmmaker, archivist and founder director of Film Heritage Foundation (FHF).

This Saturday, Dungarpur together with award-winning actor Irawati Harshe Mayadev will conduct a workshop called Do You Speak Cinema? It's an educational programme for seven- to 10-year-olds developed by the FHF. The two-module workshop will introduce children to the history of cinema and how visual images can be read like text, while ensuring that they get hands-on experience. "We'll be showing kids movies on 16 mm film projectors, and they will also get to draw on celluloid. The concept of persistence of vision will be introduced through optical devices like the zoetrope," informs Dungarpur, adding that the idea behind what an archive is and its importance will be woven into the session.