Field Stories

These stories bring out the real-life narratives, moments, and experiences, highlighting the stories and voices of the communities our fellows work with

KHAAN : The Evolution Of A Dead Mine

KHAAN : The Evolution Of A Dead Mine

A few months back I worked on a radio series called Khanabadoshon Ki Duniya (The world of migrants). It focused on breaking the narrative of internal migrants as a threat to development as portrayed by various media. The themes touched upon areas like the...

Ladakh : The Land That Was!

It looked like a dream, stayed like an old friend and will be often recalled as the land where most outsiders found bliss, either in nature or in other people and a few, within themselves. Everyone knows Ladakh is heavenly, not just in the way it looks but also how it...

Barter In The Hinterlands Of Gujarat

I work with Centre for Social Justice (CSJ), a  legal aid organisation in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Foremost of CSJ’s vision is to create a network of legal aid centres across India. One of our centres is setup in Umarpada block of Surat district. This dainty quite block is...

What Renu Managed To Do With Training And Courage

What Renu Managed To Do With Training And Courage

Renu Devi was 7 months pregnant and expecting her second child. It was around midnight that she started having labour pains. She ignored the pain since her expected due date was two months away so she thought these must be false pains. Moreover, it was late at night...

Sanju’s Tryst With Beekeeping

Sanju’s Tryst With Beekeeping

Beekeeping, apart from helping improve crop produce and sustainability, can also provide a viable source of income for many in rural India. An account of how the practice has helped a high-school dropout rediscover his purpose in life, thanks to proper training and...

Humans Of Demonetization : A Digital Campaign

Humans Of Demonetization : A Digital Campaign

To read the whole story click here Just a few minutes before the official announcement, different corners of this nation had different things to worry about: the capital region wouldn’t stop ranting about the smog, people down-south were worried about a chief minister...

Voices Behind Statistics : The Faces Of The City

Voices Behind Statistics : The Faces Of The City

I had evidently become curious about every passing human – co-passengers in the metro, rickshaw pullers in the neighbourhood, friends, co workers and the like. No one in my vicinity seemed to belong here. They seemed to have travelled from faraway places in the...

Pidiya, A Unique Bihari Festival For Girls

Pidiya made on wall India is a country of diversity where in every 5 miles the language and water changes. In different states people have different rituals, customs, festivals and celebrations. Having been in Bihar since last few months, I witnessed some rituals, the...

Boating In A Cricket Ground

The title may sound a little weird but this is talk of the town in Mhaswad for the last month. When the fellowship journey started, field visits were usual and I had chance to visit nearby places and get familiarized with the surroundings. The town is gifted (not sure...

Ecological Sanitation or EcoSan

A prodigious concept to know about. During field visit got chance to know about EcoSan. A unique system of sustainable sanitation. It is named as Ecological Sanitation and commonly known as EcoSan.  It is the concept of hoop system in which human excreta is converted...

Witches In The Family

A woman who gives birth to a child, takes care of family, can also be a witch. Yes, you heard me right. It’s shocking, but it is the bitter truth of some parts of this country. Witch branding has very strong roots in villages. Research has recognised 12 states where...

Being A Good Interviewer

It is said that to become a good radio interviewer there is no substitute for experience. I got a good understanding of this at very beginning of my fellowship journey with Mann Deshi Tarang (A Community Radio Station in Maharashtra). I was astonished by the...

Freedom From Congestion : The Impact Of Housing Finance

Freedom From Congestion : The Impact Of Housing Finance

He dropped out of school when he was in the seventh grade. Prakash, 34, is a diminutive young man who regrets leaving school. Nevertheless, having worked his way up, he is now a skilled worker building concrete structures. Although he was satisfied with his occupation...