Somewhere, in the mighty podcast universe of Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, Hubhopper and more, lies a delightful one for kids titled MonMon’s Bedtime Rhymes. 25 original, feel-good, meaningful rhymes that nurture children's imagination and vocabulary. What listeners are first greeted by is the podcast cover picture that has an image of a mother holding her baby. The lady is none other than MonMon – the writer and narrator of the series. And the baby, as you’ll guess, is her son – the inspiration. Amongst others, this article delves into how the podcast came to be.

About the Creator
Monica Datta (MonMon) is an advertising copywriter and theatre workshop instructor for kids. Her cosy study is a reflection of her – warm and bright – with yellow drapes, a wooden table, an art shelf, and movie posters. Not to forget, two big windows, with a gorgeous view of trees, that welcome in ample sunshine to fill the whole space. On her desktop is a lapel mic expected to get into action the coming season. Beside the mic, is a toddler’s sippy cup.


The Birth of a Rhyme Series
In 2020, when the first lockdown was imposed, Monica was a nursing mother to her five-month-old baby. When subsequent and longer lockdowns became the new norm, it impacted many in her close circle. A few friends lost their jobs. A few were stuck in cities away from their children, aged parents, unable to travel back. Two of her cousins were all set to fly out for further studies but their plans had to get stalled. Irrespective of the city and age group, the invisible impact of the lockdown started to seemingly weigh down on all; creeping into conversations on social media, over the phone, and on video calls.

It was during this period that Monica felt the need to create something that would help families bond and sleep better at night, on a feel-good note. Being aware that children are highly receptive and easily pick up and sense stress in the environment, she wanted children to escape to places, in the endless world of imagination, given that they couldn’t step out of home much.

As a part of her daily routine, she would always tell her baby a story while making him sleep. Inspiration came one day, during one such instance. When she thought to herself that given that her son seems to stay calm and sleep better at night after listening to her stories, why not share them with the world too; so that any listener/ reader tuning in from wherever can benefit from it? And that’s how MonMon’s Bedtime Rhymes was conceived.

Why Rhymes
Rhymes help develop an ear for language. The metre and rhythm make it fun for children to learn new words, to listen and read more. It’s something that also comes easy to Monica. She finds it to be her comfort zone. Incidentally, at the tender age of four, Monica composed an impromptu rhyme titled 'The Moon Went to the Bathroom'. “That is how,” she says, “I have always seen the world... through the lens of empathy; where everything I visualise, every object, has emotions and a voice.”

What Next
In the near future, Monica is eager to get her rhymes published in an illustrated book format. Her rhymes cater mostly to kids between the age of 6 to 12. The ones who have outgrown the common nursery rhymes but are curious to learn new words through an original bunch of stories. For this, she is presently on the keen look out for children’s book illustrators and publishers who feel as passionate about the rhymes as she does.

And not many know but soon after MonMon’s Bedtime Rhymes, Monica penned a Season 2 for MonMon Rhymes called Animals That Once Were. This was written to spark empathy and kindness in young minds towards animals. And make them aware of how in their absence, human actions can bear catastrophic consequences. This series has not been voiced or uploaded to any Podcast platform; but can be viewed on her Facebook and Instagram page.


Who Are Listening?
The top 5 countries tuning in to MonMon’s Bedtime Rhymes are India, Ireland, Ghana, USA, and UK.

For her daily dose of motivation, Monica logs in to the host app of her podcast and goes directly to the analytics page. Without any investment in paid advertising, the podcast has managed to feature either as the top result or in the top 10 results when one searches for ‘rhymes’ or ‘bedtime rhymes’. There has been a steady rise in unique listenership throughout, from audiences in India and abroad. To which Monica says and signs off, “I’m just delighted that my rhymes are able to reach out to and connect with so many people from far and wide. I write for kids but I’ve also had adults tell me that they listen to the podcast during bedtime as the rhymes have a soothing effect on them.”


All episodes of MonMon’s Bedtime Rhymes can be accessed at
Website: https://hubhopper.com/podcast/monmons-bedtime-rhymes/311534

Get in touch with Monica
Facebook: www.facebook.com/MonMonRhymes
Twitter: @MonMonRhymes
Instagram: @monmonrhymes
LinkedIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/monicadatta/

Contact details
E: [email protected]