The Ghotul is an ongoing exercise in thinking about rural futures, and also what the idea of rural might point towards. The projects takes inspiration from the dormitory like spaces found in some villages in central India. These spaces are social and religious hubs where children of the village learn fundamental life skills. Over time, with the increase in government schools these ghotuls have either vanished, or their role has been minimised to hosting occasional religious ceremonies and social gatherings.

Having grown up away from cities, the future of rural areas is something that I care about deeply. The Ghotul began as an exercise in imagining a place where people could come together to think about tradition, to study existing frameworks of non-urban human settlements, and to articulate new approaches for the future. 

The Ghotul takes the form of a blueprint that includes drawings, writings and notes from conversations, with myself and others, providing a glimpse of my enquiry into some of the questions that I have been working on. The project also explores the history of spaces of learning within various cultures. 

I am interested in learning how knowledge is produced, stored, transmitted, and accessed in formal and informal sites of learning. Also, at a more fundamental level, when is something classified as knowledge? 

With time I hope to give more form to these preliminary conversations and exercises, and perhaps consider more practical implications.