This Republic Day, KLAY, one of India’s leading and most trusted early childhood education and care brands, has launched its Republic Day digital campaign, ‘What Is India?’ The campaign draws from the innate curiosity of preschool children, exploring how early ideas of belonging and national identity begin to form long before children formally understand the concept of a nation.
Designed to spark reflection among parents, educators, and communities, the campaign highlights how young children perceive India—not through history lessons or national symbols, but through the behaviours, emotions, and relationships they observe in their everyday lives. By centring the voices of preschoolers, the campaign reimagines nationhood as a lived experience rooted in inclusion, care, and shared social moments.
Preschoolers may not yet grasp abstract concepts such as governance or geography. However, exposure to national celebrations like Republic Day and witnessing adults express pride and emotion naturally prompts children to ask questions about what India represents. The campaign’s central question, “What Is India?”, emerges from this early curiosity, recognising that children derive meaning from lived experiences rather than formal explanations.
The campaign is anchored in KLAY’s belief that a child’s environment plays a critical role in shaping their worldview. At this formative stage, ideas of identity and belonging are shaped through relationships, community interactions, and emotional security within familiar spaces such as classrooms and homes.
Speaking on the campaign, Arshleen Kalra, Head of Academic, KLAY Preschools and Daycare, said,
“While the idea of a nation may still be abstract for young children, they are highly perceptive to behavioural patterns and interpersonal relationships. When children witness pride in India around them, they naturally seek to understand what India stands for. This campaign interprets that curiosity through children’s everyday experiences and interactions.”
Through ‘What Is India?’, KLAY reiterates its commitment to early learning that extends beyond academic readiness to include social awareness, emotional development, and a strong sense of community. The campaign reinforces the belief that the foundations of citizenship are laid early in life—quietly shaped by the environments in which children grow, observe, and absorb the world around them.
