Embedded Files
Being in 'field' is an immersive experience for me and given my early training in journalism & video production, I document field insights in this blog. It also has video blogs, made Instagram style for bulk consumption!
Enjoy!
Mobile Media on the Border: Interuptions and Negotiations
Jan 30, 2023
How do you negotiate life in a village that is right on the country's border, shared with a not-so-friendly neighbour? What happens when technology comes into play?
The residents of Pucca Chisti village near the Sadqi border shared by India and Pakistan (some 100kms from Ghudda, Punjab) have a unique story to tell. Some of the villagers own land that is on the order side of the border or the no man's land unclaimed by either nations.
I had the unique opportunity to interact with the residents at the last inhabited village at this border in North Western state of Punjab as part of my role as the documentation in charge for a cycling trip to the border organized by my university and the challenges are unique in their own sense. Their phones are ritualistically switched off when they go off in the field and the mobile networks often fail, owing to their proximity to a physical border.
The village was interestingly under Pakistani occupation in the late 70s for over four years and in the initial years of mobile internet, the youth in the village travelled around 10kms+ on foot or bikes to access internet connectivity. The situation has improved with internet access available for some networks in the village but the access is not constant.
The aspirations for a phone exist, and the youth negotiate access to the latest iPhone variants. "I have studied in Chandigarh (state capital of Punjab and Haryana, a metropolitan city) and the internet connectivity there is incomparable. I bought my iPhone there but now it is used mostly to click pictures. Consuming content is a little difficult as the speed is not as high as it is supposed to be," said a 22 year old resident of the village.
The villagers narrated how their access is highly regulated and often hampered in bad weather conditions, especially flood. I never got around to going back for interviews in detail, but the insights helped me understand a side of mobile media interactions that felt the need for more focus.
Winter mornings cycling in Jhumba, Punjab, India
A school in rural Punjab near Rajpura, Patiala
Women engaged in stitching
A girl performs Gidda in a village gathering organized by a non-profit to commemorate International Women's Day 2022
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The faith factor: Insights from a prayer service in rural Punjab
December 5, 2023
The room was a little too crowded and the hymns unfamiliar. Growing up in Jharkhand (sizeable Christian population), and with an education in Jesuit schools and colleges, I have been to innumerable prayer services. But I didn't expect one in the heart of rural Malwa in middle of my fieldwork.
I was expecting a smaller crowd, but people were gathered, reverent in prayer. Two young boys were filming the service, most probably for their social media channels. I was a stranger, and I didn't exactly feel confident enough to whip out my phone, let alone the camera I carry everywhere.
Christmas was near and the girls were supposed to prep for performances: Gidda in praise of the Lord and devotional music borrowed from Punjabi YouTube channels.
When I moved to Aulakh, a tiny village enroute to Sri Mukstar Sahib in Punjab sometime in late August, I didn't realise I will experience something like what I did. It all started with when a girl (who eventually became an instrumental aid for my fieldwork) refused Prasad or holy offering to gods at a shop. It wasn't commonplace and the shopkeeper violently gestured me his dissatisfaction.
"Baba Waale Aa" he said, which roughly translated to "She's from a group with some baba (religious leader)". She was around 16, sweet and left the shop with the Mustard Oil packet she was there to buy. The size of the packet indicated the purchase was made for a meal or two: such small packets were bought only by homes and families who cannot afford to spend in bulk for a larger packet in cash or weren't offered credit. In simpler terms, it was clear that her financial condition wasn't exactly good.
I met her again a few days later in a focus group discussion, and she was vocal about her mobile media usage, more so than others. Joban, she shared her name. Distinctly Punjabi. Weeks later on a walk to her friend's home, I asked her about the Prasad.
She repeated the exact words. Only to clarify who this baba was. Turns out, it's Jesus. In the middle of the endless rows of Sikh and Hindu households, there was this teenager speaking to me in fluent Punjabi sharing she's a practicing Christian. And I couldn't resist from asking her to talk about it.
Soon enough, I was introduced to her Instagram account, with reels on songs like 'Mera Yeshu mere Naal Naal Hai'. I listened as she opened up, took me around and introduced me to other people who have converted to Christianity over the years.
Their usage of social media to document their religious expressions online has been of great interest to me especially given the discontent around their choice in their real lives off the internet. Like the shopkeeper, many others in the village are not very approving, including family members. Someday, I would like to read more and go deeper.
Till then, I am glad my friend has found a way to express her connection with god and find solace in her narrative online.
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