Bento membership is a way for you to support our mission to encourage reading and storytelling. Members get access to our quarterly children’s magazine, Bento, free workshops, and monthly printables. The magazine is ideal for 8-14 year old readers. Bento is the ONLY South-Asia-inspired children’s magazine in print in the world. For receiving Bento magazine in India, please see the options below.
If you’d like to get Bento delivered in the US, Canada, U.K., or other countries, please head to our bookstore page. In India, we have a partnership with local nonprofit, Millennium India Education Foundation that allows us to locally distribute Bento.
Membership
Issue 8 themed, ‘Curious Garden‘ talks about community and courage. Writers: Prakash Manu, Santhini Govindan, Mahesh C. Punetha, Aatash, Bahram Rehman, Aparna Nagda Artists: Chandrima Chatterjee, Reechik Banerjee, Niloufer Wadia, Anushua Sinha, Ira Nagar, and more. Special section for student reporters.
Members receive four issues, free workshops and monthly printables. Each magazine has stories, poems, activities, art, and writing prompts and games!
Membership: INR 1000/year
What Readers Are Saying
Perfect for my bookworm
Reader, London
It’s SO GOOD!
Reader, Canton
It’s an invitation to begin!
Reader, Bangalore
Bento was the Editor’s Choice Holiday Pick in the US in 2024 and 2025.
product of culture, 2024
“… Bento is the future Target and Tinkle of our generation…”
“… It’s such an intriguing magazine, I can’t imagine falling asleep without it ..”
“… such a high quality magazine. A variety of creative content, illustrations, information, it’s a sheer delight…”
Back Issues of Bento
Bento #1
Issue #1: Where the Wild Things Are
Writers: Brij Nath Betab, Varun Grover, Aftab Shaikh, Santhini Govindan, Professor Shah Mahmoud Hanifi, and more. Artists: Janan Abir, Tishya Malya, Neeta Desai, Chandrima Chatterjee, and more.
Bento #2
Issue #2: The Shape of Home
Writers: Deepa Agarwal, Santhini Govindan, Marzeih Abbas, J. Ramanand, and more. Artists: Chandrima Chatterjee, Shubhshree Mathur, Shreya Chowdhury, and more.
Bento #3
Issue #3: The Invisible String
Writers: Saadia Faruqi, Manoj Ishtwal, Aftab Shaikh, Dezh Azaad, Urmila Bilgi and more. Artists: Chandrima Chatterjee, Ira Nagar, Aishwarya Deopujari, Reechik Banerjee, and more.
Bento #4
Issue #4: The Together Tree
Writers: Ghulam Nabi Aatash, Reem Faruqi, Santhini Govindan, Dr. Daud Ali, and more. Artists: Chandrima Chatterjee, Reechik Banerjee, Onkar Mahamuni, Ira Nagar, and more.
Bento #5
Issue #5: Outside-In
Writers: Suma Subramaniam, Santhini Govindan, Rohan Chakravarty and more. Artists: Chandrima Chatterjee, Reechik Banerjee, Niloufer Wadia, Anushua Sinha, Ira Nagar, and more
Bento #6
Issue #6: Bravo Avocado
Writers: Ambreen Butt-Hussain, Mahesh Punetha, Salma Hussain, and more. Artists: Chandrima Chatterjee, Reechik Banerjee, Niloufer Wadia, Anushua Sinha, Ira Nagar, and more
Bento #7
Issue #7: Are We There Yet
Writers: Santhini Govindan, Varsha Varghese, Dr. Shah Mahmoud Hanifi, Sudeshna Ghosh, Brinda Shah, and more. Artists: Chandrima Chatterjee, Reechik Banerjee, Niloufer Wadia, Anushua Sinha, Ira Nagar
Bento #9
Strictly no Elephants
Getting cooked.
Bento #10
Here and Now
Currently, in the oven.
If you would like to get ONLY a single copy of a backissue, find it for India here (credit card payment) or with UPI here.
In India, Bento is distributed and produced with the help of our national-award-winning nonprofit partners, Millennium India Education Foundation.
Bento is available in Indian bookstores including Atta Galatta (Bangalore), BookWorld (Dehradun), Rachna Bookstore (Gangtok), and Dogears Bookshop (Goa), Midland books (Delhi).
It is also available in school libraries including Valley View Elementary, Wines Elementary, Tappan Middle School, Green Fields School, Mount Abu School, Salwan Public School, Vishwa Bharati School, GD Goenka Public School, Sardar Patel Vidyalaya, Hansraj Model School and many more.
Bento is listed as a top kid’s resource in the Midwest Book Review from 2025. It was the kidlit holiday pick in the US in 2024 and 2025.
The Bento magazine is completely free of any commercial ads and is support by voluntary member payments or donations. The payments and donations support the cost of printing and shipping of the magazine and to pay for experts, artists, who contribute to the production.
Frequently asked questions
- What makes Bento unique compared to other children’s magazines? Bento is the ONLY South-Asia-inspired children’s magazine in print in the world. Isn’t it awesome to bring stories from so many different countries?
- Is Bento magazine only for South Asian children? All children aged 8+ and their parents will LOVE Bento. Good stories belong everywhere!
- What age group is Bento magazine designed for? Bento best serves children aged 8-12 years.
- Does Bento include activities parents can do with their kids? Yes! We have quizzes, family games, coloring, and ideas you can explore individually, with friends, and with family.
- What do Bento members get? You get the print copy and free storytelling workshops. Bento members also can submit stories to contests for free. If you represent a school, you can nominate two students per grade level to free workshops and contest submissions. Bento members also get printables, tips, and resources via our member newsletter each month.
- Can I submit my child’s writing or artwork to Bento? Please submit children’s art and/or writing as a part of our quarterly contests for children. You can also submit artwork by writing Bento a letter or responding to activities within each issue. Children can also join us as student reporters.
- Can I update my member details or not renew the Bento membership? Please fill our member update form here before the quarterly deadlines of Jan 5, April 5, Jul 5, or October 5. Changes are then reflected in the upcoming shipping period. For those who choose not to renew, we will pause your membership immediately once your period is up. We do not offer partial refunds as the production process works with 2 issues 6-8 months in advance. Renewal information is in your monthly newsletters before the start of a new quarter. Starting October 2025, we also send physical letters with your 4th issue so you’re aware if your membership renewals are coming up.