Voices of Rural India

A curated platform for rural storytellers

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Voices of Rural India is a not-for-profit initiative that aims to revolutionize storytelling. For perhaps the first time, we bring you curated stories of rural India… in rural voices.

We hope to turn the unprecedented Covid-19 crisis into an opportunity to upgrade digital skills and create alternate livelihoods among rural communities, while building a repository of knowledge and traditions that are slowly fading away.

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Each time you read, comment and share a story on Voices of Rural India, it encourages someone far away to work on their craft.

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Ladakh

Himachal Pradesh

Uttarakhand

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A wonderful article on IJNet @ijnet about Voices o

A wonderful article on IJNet @ijnet about Voices of Rural India. Thank you! Also featuring our partners, @voicesofmunsiari and @spitiecosphere ☺️

Storytelling is second nature to rural communities in India. By bringing together digital technology with our intrinsic storytelling traditions, Voices of Rural India hopes to turn a global crisis into an opportunity.

"'Digital technologies made it easier for us to survive during the lockdown in urban areas, but the same privilege wasn’t being extended to the rural areas," says co-founder and travel writer Shivya Nath. Even with the recent access to smartphones, people are consumers of content more than they are creators. To that effect, there are no real opportunities or tools to develop those skills. This digital divide became very gaping.

That's how Voices of Rural India was born.'"

A big THANK YOU to all our readers for your incredible support!

Read the complete article on: https://ijnet.org/en/story/voices-rural-india-trains-digital-storytellers-and-helps-offset-lost-tourism-revenue

Did you know? The Amchi (traditional medicine prac

Did you know? The Amchi (traditional medicine practitioner) in Spiti can diagnose illnesses simply by reading the pulse?

In this fascinating story, @chhering.norbu describes the best-kept secrets of the Himalayas as part of “Sowa Rigpa” or traditional Tibetan medicine. And why eating stones is an important part of it. Also, these miracle stones have genders!

“The people of Spiti have sought treatment from Amchis since ancient times when no modern medicine was accessible here...In my time as an Amchi, I have seen many new illnesses...which were not prevalent or diagnosed earlier in Spiti Valley...

In our practice, these conditions can be cured by a special stone called ‘Chug Jhi’ (Cong Zi – Coloitum)...This stone is shiny, and usually white in color. Two varieties of this stone are found in my high-altitude village of Demul. These two varieties are addressed as Pho Chong (male) and Mong Chong (female), but when it comes to treatment, the male stone is used to treat female patients and vice versa.

This stone is pounded by hand into a fine powder, and people consume 1/4th teaspoon twice a day for two weeks...People get relief after consuming it for two weeks, and the best part is that there are no side effects.”

Read “Why the people of Spiti eat Stones” in English/Hindi through the link in our bio. Or visit www.voicesofruralindia.org

*NEW STORY* Imagine a pride of 11 peacocks dancing

*NEW STORY* Imagine a pride of 11 peacocks dancing just for you in a misty forest. Or witnessing a tiger hunt prey in the mountains. Isn't it a marvellous world where tiny blades of grass grow out of the same ground as towering trees? Where the best moments aren't always what you see, but in the things you hear, sense, and feel?

Soniya Thakur has had front row seats to the overwhelming beauty of Mother Nature; what she calls 'The Best Show on Earth'.

"From the moment we are born, Mother Nature is a part of our lives at Tirthan, and we are part of hers. Gazing upon her, it’s easy to forget all our sorrows. I feel safe and protected around her, and overwhelmed by her beauty."

But the hills are now bare. The wild animals seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth and fire rages through pristine forests each year!

Soniya shares a beautiful ode to the mountains in her new story "Tigers, Peacocks, and Forests on Fire". A heartfelt reminder of how our roots are inextricably linked to nature. "It is hard to understand how we can harm something so beautiful.", says Soniya. Something worth thinking about today!

Read in English or hear audio snippets in Hindi through the link in our bio, or on www.voicesofruralindia.org

Supported by @himalayanecotourism

*MEET THE STORYTELLER* Tsering Dorjey - or ‘Acho

*MEET THE STORYTELLER* Tsering Dorjey - or ‘Acho’ (older brother) as the children in Ladakh call him - is a force to reckon with!

His deep love for Ladakh is evident in numerous social causes he supports - from cleanliness, energy poverty, to education and livelihood. There is no single village in Ladakh where people do not recognize him!

He was born in Sumda Chenmo in the stunning Markha region of Ladakh, accessible only by a 5-hour trek! Dorjey moved to Leh for further education but dropped out in the eighth grade due to lack of opportunities and educational support.

Since 2001, Dorjey has worked as a tourist guide and cook for various trekking expeditions. In 2014, he joined hands with @globalhimalayanexpedition to electrify remote villages in Ladakh. His invaluable support and local know-how have enabled GHE to identify and electrify 101 remote villages in Ladakh and counting.

His journeys across the remotest regions of Ladakh have also turned him into an amazing storyteller! Dorjey shares the legend of the Sumda Chun Monastery in his story “A 1000-year-old Monastery built overnight”

Go to https://www.voicesofruralindia.org/ to read the story or hear audio snippets.

In times when we’ve seemingly created a world on

In times when we’ve seemingly created a world only for humans, the community in Purushwadi, Maharashtra still follows indigenous practices rooted in conservation.

Theirs is a world that belongs to all creatures - great and small. A thought-provoking story by Mahadu Chindhu Kondar @mahadu.kondar.23 on his village’s relationship with tigers.

“Just two years ago, my cousin Dinkar Kondar survived a tiger attack. He quickly clambered up a tree, and that saved his life!

Despite these encounters, for us indigenous people, the tiger is our deity.

Alongside the road in the western part of my village of Purushwadi, there is a site sacred to us: three-four stones smeared with vermilion, and a carved wooden post. This is a shrine dedicated to our tiger deity.

Before we begin any auspicious activity, we worship the tiger. This is an ancient practice for us. Ordinarily, tigers don’t attack humans. We firmly believe that the tiger is a peaceful, majestic animal.”

Read “Where the Tiger is God” in English/Marathi/Hindi through the link in our bio or on www.voicesofruralindia.org

Thrilled to be featured on Firstpost! Thank you fo

Thrilled to be featured on Firstpost! Thank you for this brilliant, in-depth feature on Voices of Rural India and our storytellers. @firstpost

“Launched on 15 August, one of the core ideas behind the initiative is to change how stories from India's villages reach people. ‘Typically, what happens with digital storytelling is urban people are telling rural people’s stories. But the people whose stories they are don’t end up owning them. That’s what we want to change.’...

VoRI pays those who contribute stories to its platform...VoRI also aims to enhance digital storytelling skills in rural India, for which they create monthly training modules covering topics like smartphone photography, creating engaging videos, and more.”

Read the complete article here:
https://www.firstpost.com/living/voices-of-rural-india-a-new-initiative-allows-rural-communities-to-tell-their-own-stories-and-monetise-them-8822121.html

#voicesofruralindia

*MEET THE STORYTELLERS* A solar engineer, entrepre

*MEET THE STORYTELLERS* A solar engineer, entrepreneur, and a mother - Gurmet Angmo is an inspiration to women everywhere.

Angmo works tirelessly for the upliftment of her community in Markha Valley, Ladakh. She has helped electrify over 50 villages in Ladakh and Meghalaya as part of projects with @globalhimalayanexpedition

A strong advocate of women empowerment, Angmo believes in leading from the front. Several platforms - both government and non-government - have recognised her incredible work. Her dream is for her daughters to acquire the necessary skills through education and serve their community.

“I have come a long way from living in the dark to setting up solar microgrids in remote villages, and I hope to keep going. I also hope other women in rural areas have a journey as beautiful as mine. To them, I’d like to say: Start small! Don’t wait for a big break or a government job. Instead, learn solar engineering, handicrafts, or any other skills you can. There are so many training programmes and opportunities for us today; make the effort to find them. And in the end, do what you can, with what you have, from where you are!"

Need an uplifting read today that makes you want to get up and show up? Angmo’s story “A Lightbulb Moment” might be it!

Head on over to the link in our bio or www.voicesofruralindia.org to read/hear audio snippets of the story.

Don’t forget to leave a few words for Angmo in the comments below. Or even better still, share your own inspiring journeys with her! 😊

What lessons have the mountains taught you? As a m

What lessons have the mountains taught you? As a mountain guide working in Tirthan Valley, every day is an adventure for Sanju Negi. He earns a living doing what he loves amid vistas of the pristine Great Himalayan National Park. But even for him, the mountains always have surprises and lessons in store.

On Fear - "Could it be a leopard?... Somehow I mustered my courage and went behind the tent, and finally saw an animal scurry away. I breathed a sigh of relief for it was a fox...That night in my tent, I thought fear always makes us imagine the worst."

On Patience (and a sense of humour) - “Trekkers with a lot of patience are quite rare too...They kept complaining that they’d come so far only to see wild animals but there was nothing here. As we were climbing up, I saw a black bear just 100 meters below us! I called out to the group, “Look behind! There’s a black bear!”...That night, one of the trekkers came to the kitchen tent, saying he couldn’t sleep out of fear. It was surprising and funny at the same time!”

On Insignificance - "I asked her why an experienced mountaineer like her needed a guide...Her reply surprised me...'A mountaineer is nothing in front of the mountains.'"

Sanju’s wonderful story “On Fear, Patience, and Insignificance” describes all these memories and more! Read/hear about his adventures through the link in our bio or on www.voicesofruralindia.org

Join the family!

Each time you read, comment and share a story on Voices of Rural India, it encourages someone far away to work on their craft.

Join 118 other subscribers

Email Address

Instagram

A wonderful article on IJNet @ijnet about Voices of Rural India. Thank you! Also featuring our partners, @voicesofmunsiari and @spitiecosphere ☺️

Storytelling is second nature to rural communities in India. By bringing together digital technology with our intrinsic storytelling traditions, Voices of Rural India hopes to turn a global crisis into an opportunity.

"'Digital technologies made it easier for us to survive during the lockdown in urban areas, but the same privilege wasn’t being extended to the rural areas," says co-founder and travel writer Shivya Nath. Even with the recent access to smartphones, people are consumers of content more than they are creators. To that effect, there are no real opportunities or tools to develop those skills. This digital divide became very gaping.

That's how Voices of Rural India was born.'"

A big THANK YOU to all our readers for your incredible support!

Read the complete article on: https://ijnet.org/en/story/voices-rural-india-trains-digital-storytellers-and-helps-offset-lost-tourism-revenue

Did you know? The Amchi (traditional medicine practitioner) in Spiti can diagnose illnesses simply by reading the pulse?

In this fascinating story, @chhering.norbu describes the best-kept secrets of the Himalayas as part of “Sowa Rigpa” or traditional Tibetan medicine. And why eating stones is an important part of it. Also, these miracle stones have genders!

“The people of Spiti have sought treatment from Amchis since ancient times when no modern medicine was accessible here...In my time as an Amchi, I have seen many new illnesses...which were not prevalent or diagnosed earlier in Spiti Valley...

In our practice, these conditions can be cured by a special stone called ‘Chug Jhi’ (Cong Zi – Coloitum)...This stone is shiny, and usually white in color. Two varieties of this stone are found in my high-altitude village of Demul. These two varieties are addressed as Pho Chong (male) and Mong Chong (female), but when it comes to treatment, the male stone is used to treat female patients and vice versa.

This stone is pounded by hand into a fine powder, and people consume 1/4th teaspoon twice a day for two weeks...People get relief after consuming it for two weeks, and the best part is that there are no side effects.”

Read “Why the people of Spiti eat Stones” in English/Hindi through the link in our bio. Or visit www.voicesofruralindia.org

*NEW STORY* Imagine a pride of 11 peacocks dancing just for you in a misty forest. Or witnessing a tiger hunt prey in the mountains. Isn't it a marvellous world where tiny blades of grass grow out of the same ground as towering trees? Where the best moments aren't always what you see, but in the things you hear, sense, and feel?

Soniya Thakur has had front row seats to the overwhelming beauty of Mother Nature; what she calls 'The Best Show on Earth'.

"From the moment we are born, Mother Nature is a part of our lives at Tirthan, and we are part of hers. Gazing upon her, it’s easy to forget all our sorrows. I feel safe and protected around her, and overwhelmed by her beauty."

But the hills are now bare. The wild animals seem to have disappeared off the face of the earth and fire rages through pristine forests each year!

Soniya shares a beautiful ode to the mountains in her new story "Tigers, Peacocks, and Forests on Fire". A heartfelt reminder of how our roots are inextricably linked to nature. "It is hard to understand how we can harm something so beautiful.", says Soniya. Something worth thinking about today!

Read in English or hear audio snippets in Hindi through the link in our bio, or on www.voicesofruralindia.org

Supported by @himalayanecotourism

*MEET THE STORYTELLER* Tsering Dorjey - or ‘Acho’ (older brother) as the children in Ladakh call him - is a force to reckon with!

His deep love for Ladakh is evident in numerous social causes he supports - from cleanliness, energy poverty, to education and livelihood. There is no single village in Ladakh where people do not recognize him!

He was born in Sumda Chenmo in the stunning Markha region of Ladakh, accessible only by a 5-hour trek! Dorjey moved to Leh for further education but dropped out in the eighth grade due to lack of opportunities and educational support.

Since 2001, Dorjey has worked as a tourist guide and cook for various trekking expeditions. In 2014, he joined hands with @globalhimalayanexpedition to electrify remote villages in Ladakh. His invaluable support and local know-how have enabled GHE to identify and electrify 101 remote villages in Ladakh and counting.

His journeys across the remotest regions of Ladakh have also turned him into an amazing storyteller! Dorjey shares the legend of the Sumda Chun Monastery in his story “A 1000-year-old Monastery built overnight”

Go to https://www.voicesofruralindia.org/ to read the story or hear audio snippets.

In times when we’ve seemingly created a world only for humans, the community in Purushwadi, Maharashtra still follows indigenous practices rooted in conservation.

Theirs is a world that belongs to all creatures - great and small. A thought-provoking story by Mahadu Chindhu Kondar @mahadu.kondar.23 on his village’s relationship with tigers.

“Just two years ago, my cousin Dinkar Kondar survived a tiger attack. He quickly clambered up a tree, and that saved his life!

Despite these encounters, for us indigenous people, the tiger is our deity.

Alongside the road in the western part of my village of Purushwadi, there is a site sacred to us: three-four stones smeared with vermilion, and a carved wooden post. This is a shrine dedicated to our tiger deity.

Before we begin any auspicious activity, we worship the tiger. This is an ancient practice for us. Ordinarily, tigers don’t attack humans. We firmly believe that the tiger is a peaceful, majestic animal.”

Read “Where the Tiger is God” in English/Marathi/Hindi through the link in our bio or on www.voicesofruralindia.org

Thrilled to be featured on Firstpost! Thank you for this brilliant, in-depth feature on Voices of Rural India and our storytellers. @firstpost

“Launched on 15 August, one of the core ideas behind the initiative is to change how stories from India's villages reach people. ‘Typically, what happens with digital storytelling is urban people are telling rural people’s stories. But the people whose stories they are don’t end up owning them. That’s what we want to change.’...

VoRI pays those who contribute stories to its platform...VoRI also aims to enhance digital storytelling skills in rural India, for which they create monthly training modules covering topics like smartphone photography, creating engaging videos, and more.”

Read the complete article here:
https://www.firstpost.com/living/voices-of-rural-india-a-new-initiative-allows-rural-communities-to-tell-their-own-stories-and-monetise-them-8822121.html

#voicesofruralindia

*MEET THE STORYTELLERS* A solar engineer, entrepreneur, and a mother - Gurmet Angmo is an inspiration to women everywhere.

Angmo works tirelessly for the upliftment of her community in Markha Valley, Ladakh. She has helped electrify over 50 villages in Ladakh and Meghalaya as part of projects with @globalhimalayanexpedition

A strong advocate of women empowerment, Angmo believes in leading from the front. Several platforms - both government and non-government - have recognised her incredible work. Her dream is for her daughters to acquire the necessary skills through education and serve their community.

“I have come a long way from living in the dark to setting up solar microgrids in remote villages, and I hope to keep going. I also hope other women in rural areas have a journey as beautiful as mine. To them, I’d like to say: Start small! Don’t wait for a big break or a government job. Instead, learn solar engineering, handicrafts, or any other skills you can. There are so many training programmes and opportunities for us today; make the effort to find them. And in the end, do what you can, with what you have, from where you are!"

Need an uplifting read today that makes you want to get up and show up? Angmo’s story “A Lightbulb Moment” might be it!

Head on over to the link in our bio or www.voicesofruralindia.org to read/hear audio snippets of the story.

Don’t forget to leave a few words for Angmo in the comments below. Or even better still, share your own inspiring journeys with her! 😊

What lessons have the mountains taught you? As a mountain guide working in Tirthan Valley, every day is an adventure for Sanju Negi. He earns a living doing what he loves amid vistas of the pristine Great Himalayan National Park. But even for him, the mountains always have surprises and lessons in store.

On Fear - "Could it be a leopard?... Somehow I mustered my courage and went behind the tent, and finally saw an animal scurry away. I breathed a sigh of relief for it was a fox...That night in my tent, I thought fear always makes us imagine the worst."

On Patience (and a sense of humour) - “Trekkers with a lot of patience are quite rare too...They kept complaining that they’d come so far only to see wild animals but there was nothing here. As we were climbing up, I saw a black bear just 100 meters below us! I called out to the group, “Look behind! There’s a black bear!”...That night, one of the trekkers came to the kitchen tent, saying he couldn’t sleep out of fear. It was surprising and funny at the same time!”

On Insignificance - "I asked her why an experienced mountaineer like her needed a guide...Her reply surprised me...'A mountaineer is nothing in front of the mountains.'"

Sanju’s wonderful story “On Fear, Patience, and Insignificance” describes all these memories and more! Read/hear about his adventures through the link in our bio or on www.voicesofruralindia.org

*NEW STORY* We’re so excited about the second photo story on @voicesofruralindia 🤗

Mahadu Chindhu Kondar, a teacher from Maharashtra’s Purushwadi village, visually documents the craftsmenship of two brothers, who use wild grass, a thorny tree and their imagination to create sustainable vessels, vases, ornaments and more!

Go right away to voicesofruralindia.org to view this story in Marathi / English - and remember to share your thoughts for Mahadu in the comments 👇🏼

Supported by @grassroutes

#voicesofruralindia #maharashtra_ig #indiatravel #purushwadi #mindfultravel

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