Ek Potlee Ret Ki

Culture. Cultured. Cultural
Are these identities we inherit, negotiate or resist?

At the invitation of Kavita Srivatsava (.pucl ), National President of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), Ek Potlee Ret Ki conducted a workshop with PUCL Rajasthan interns, young law students, on what cultural justice is and what it truly means.

We began with five-line self-introductions. What seemed simple opened conversations on oppression, identity, and the way culture shapes our everyday life. From there, we reflected on culture, cultured, cultural as ideas that shape public life, truth-telling, and belonging. We spoke about the politics of language, the colonisation of the mind, and how in the age of social media, culture is reduced to trends that prioritise visibility over survival.

A key idea anchored the space: oppression is cultural. This helped interns see law not as an isolated system, but as something deeply shaped by culture, memory, and power.

Music has always been our pedagogical tool. The space deepened with the Viduthalai Kalai Kuzhu (Voice of Liberation Troupe), founded by Late Revolutionary Poet Dalit Subbaiah, whose troupe we met in Jaipur. Through songs on feminism, everyday cultures, religion, harmony, and social justice, translated live by Radhika Ganesh, music became a form of truth-telling, carrying histories of struggle, dignity, and resistance.

We were also joined by Bhanwar Meghwanshi ( ), author and activist, Priyakshi Agarwal ( ), performer and researcher, and our friends from the Kashmir Law Circle ( )whose perspectives pushed the conversation deeper.

Bringing in voices rooted in Dravidian ideology allowed interns to place Dravidianism in conversation with the ideologies shaping their own state governments, creating space to compare, question authority, and reflect on how power and governance operate in everyday life.

The interns received the space in a generous spirit, speaking openly about their identities and reflecting deeply on the ideas shared. We believe these conversations will shape how they see law, culture, and their role in society.

What happens when a community denied identity for generations is finally asked to bring its history to the table? In early November 2025, Ek Potlee Ret Ki was back in Rajasthan, supporting Olakhaan in facilitating special grievance redressal camps for Denotified, Semi-Nomadic and Nomadic communities. For us, this work grew from over a decade of cultural engagement, advocacy and rights work with these communities.

Beyond grievances, the camps centred remembrance and documentation. Ek Potlee Ret Ki initiated घुमंतू संस्कृति का दस्तावेज़ीकरण, inviting communities to bring photographs, clothing, artefacts etc that carried their histories. Through conversations on cultural memory and intergenerational transfer, each object became proof of existence, belonging and the need to place culture at the heart of justice.

Image Description
1. Record turnout, 850 grievances recorded in a single day
2. Members of the Banjara community speak at the Nomadic Culture Documentation section about the loss of their indigenous cattle-trading livelihood in the current political climate.
3.Ek Potlee Ret Ki goes no where without its Punch
4.Volunteers assist community members in filling out grievance forms during the camps.
5.Intergenerational women from the Banjara community representing and sharing their culture.
6. .banjara on the importance of the Ghumantu Pehchaan Patra and its role in accessing other identity documents.
7.During mobilisation, women from a Banjara basti perform Gujaradi.
8.During mobilisation in Railmagra, speaks to Banjara men about the strength of one’s identity, saying “aapka dhandha, aapka dharm hai.”
9.A couple from the Bagariya community proudly carry their broomsticks made from date-palm leaves (Khajur) and stand for a photograph.
10.Radhika Ganesh shares her Gudadi bag with women from the Banjara community, speaking about preserving indigenous art forms and passing them on as sustainable livelihoods.
11.Paras Banjara walks Rajsamand District Collector Arun Kumar Hasija through the Rajsamand grievance redressal camp.
12.Parchis have been one of the most important tools for communication during mobilisations and people’s movements.

Our 9th Annual Grant & Fellowship Application Support Cycle is now open!

As we mark 10 years of Ek Potlee Ret Ki, we’re supporting two practitioners to shape strong, politically grounded proposals for existing grant/fellowship calls.
(Note: we are not a granting body, you must already have an open opportunity in mind.)

Our 2024-25 cohort included:
who received an
Grant
who recieved the Himalayan Fellowship
who became an Arts in Partnership fellow under

Send a 250–300 word SOP (any language) on who you are, the opportunity you’re applying for, and why this moment matters.

Email it to: [email protected]
Subject: Application Support 2026 – [Your Name]

Only two slots open this year so hurry!

They banned twenty-five books on Kashmir. While we find pages still alive in the voices, silences and shared cups of tea - vehicles of solidarity, that are key to survival, are constantly dismantled.

Read the letter.
Let us reimagine shared solidarities.

Witnessing Kashmir with Ek Potlee Ret Ki

We know we post every Sunday, however, a tiny package from Kashmir landed on our doorstep for the weekend and kept us entertained 🤭We apologise for the delay!

For our second post in the Wular Lake series, we turn to the labour and memory of women who live and work by the water.

As lotus blooms return to Wular after nearly three decades, they bring not just signs of ecological revival, but the possibility of social mobility for a community shaped by absence, adaptation and care 🪷

This post centres women’s knowledge and quiet strength. Through food, labour and everyday survival, we see how deeply ecology and social life are connected in Kashmir’s lesser-heard geographies.

We have left an important message for you on the last slide! Go, swipe!

Witnessing Kashmir is our ongoing documentation series on the region’s cultural, ecological and political landscape. Support this work by engaging with the post. Like, save, share and leave your thoughts in the comments.



Video credit: A fisherwoman at the Hazratbal market, Srinagar | for the Ek Potlee Ret Ki archive

This is a fun post about serious things. Can’t say much more - Instagram is watching!

Help us overcome these repeated shadow bans by reading, sharing and engaging with our posts on K_sh_ir.

Reference Appendix:
Daily Excelsior (2023). Mineral Resources of J&K and Ladakh.
Down To Earth (2023). Scarred by Mining: Unchecked Riverbed Extraction in Kashmir.
Jammu & Kashmir Policy Institute (JKPI) (2023). Risks of Unchecked Mining to Trout Fish in Jammu and Kashmir.
Kashmir Observer (2022). Dredging Irrigation Canals, Wetlands, Flood Channels: Environmental Implications.
Invest India / SlideShare (2018). Jammu and Kashmir State Report.
Reddit – r/Kashmiri (2024). Local Testimonies on Flash Floods and Illegal Dredging in South Kashmir.
Eco-Business (2023). Carbon Bootprint: Why Are Military Emissions Top Secret?
Climate Change Performance Index (CCPI) (2023). The Military Emissions Gap: How Military Operations Affect Climate Policy.
Firstpost (2024). The War on Climate Change: 7 Ways the Indian Army is Cutting Down Its Emissions.
Indian Defence News (2020). Fuel Cells: A Viable Option for Indian Army’s High-Altitude Needs.
IDST (Institute for Defence Studies and Technologies) (2023). Green Initiatives in Indian Defence: Solar and Hydrogen Adoption.
Reddit – r/India and r/WorldNews (2023). Discussion on India’s Lithium Discovery and Defence Decarbonisation.

This is the first in a series of stories from the banks of Wular Lake, Asia’s second-largest freshwater lake, and a lifeline for thousands of fisher families in the valley.

Serene at first glance, Wular hides stories of vanishing fish, shrinking wetlands, and women’s unseen labour. Local leaders spoke of extraction, pollution, and the quiet strength that sustains life by the water.

Swipe through to witness what it means to live beside a lake that gives life even as it is slowly being taken.

Conversations around Kashmir’s ecological and cultural life are rare. Telling these everyday stories helps preserve what power often erases. What does it mean when a waterbody that feeds a people is made invisible in policy, politics, and memory?

Support our work by engaging with this post—like, share, and leave us your thoughts in the comments.

Welcome to Khaas Khaandani - a new series by Ek Potlee Ret Ki under our Kashmir documentation that looks beyond ‘the paradise’ to trace the deep entanglements between Kashmir’s land, its people, and everything that flows from it.

Through Ek Potlee Ret Ki’s ethical documentation, we explore how land and natural resources don’t just sustain economies, they define cultures and help us trace collective memory across generations.

In Kashmir, these questions become even more urgent. The region’s waters, minerals, and forests are not just abundant, they are geopolitically significant. They shape national ambitions, determine policy, and yet, rarely are they spoken of in the same breath as identity and resistance.

What happens when we begin to name the value - not just the violence?
Maybe it’s time for us to think about what the right questions are.

Head to the stories , , and take the quiz and see just how khaas your knowledge is.

Winners get bragging rights, and maybe a surprise from the Potlee!

Ram Lal ji’s visit to Arna Jharna: The Desert Museum of Rajasthan, Jodhpur

प्रसिद्ध कोमल कोठारी जी ने रूपायन संस्थान (Rajasthan Institute of Folklore) की एक रूपरेखा बनाई और एक म्यूजियम की स्थापना की, जहाँ पर कठपुतली को प्राथमिकता दी गई। इस संग्रहालय में सैकड़ों कठपुतलियाँ रखी गई हैं।हमने एक पारंपरिक कलाकार प्रेम जी का इंटरव्यू भी किया, जो कठपुतली कला से जुड़े हैं। यह इंटरव्यू हमने उनके घर पर जाकर किया, क्योंकि वह इस म्यूजियम में उपस्थित नहीं थे।

म्यूजियम में काफी कठपुतलियाँ थीं, लेकिन वे बहुत विशिष्ट नहीं लगीं। उनकी सिलाई भी साधारण थी और कोई विशेष कहानी भी स्पष्ट नहीं हो रही थी।
यहाँ मुझे मेरे परिचित पात्र जैसे गड़बड़ खान, साकुरी, नरसी, बज, पठान आदि नहीं दिखे। ऐसा लग रहा था जैसे कठपुतलियाँ केवल दिखाने के लिए रखी गई हैं।एक तंबू भी बनाया गया है, जिसे स्टेज की तरह इस्तेमाल किया गया है। वहाँ कुछ लिखा हुआ भी था। म्यूजियम में मिट्टी के घर बनाए गए हैं जो प्राकृतिक रूप से बहुत सुंदर लगते हैं।हालाँकि, वहाँ कठपुतली के बारे में कोई विशेष जानकारी या लिखित विवरण नहीं मिला। केवल कई चेहरे दिखाई दिए, जिनकी मैंने तस्वीर खींची।एक बात मुझे स्पष्ट रूप से समझ में आई - कठपुतली पर काम तो हुआ है, लेकिन वह सिर्फ ऊपरी सतह पर हुआ है।
अब देखता हूँ कि मैं आगे इस पर कितना काम कर पाता हूँ। फिर भी, यह एक अच्छा प्रयास है कि लोग कठपुतली पर काम कर रहे हैं।

The renowned Komal Kothari founded Rupayan Sansthan (Rajasthan Institute of Folklore) and set up a museum focused on puppetry, with hundreds of puppets on display. I interviewed traditional puppeteer Prem ji at his home, as he wasn’t present at the museum.

The puppets, though many, lacked distinctiveness - basic stitching, unclear narratives, and no familiar characters like Gadbad Khan or Narsi. It felt more like a display than a space for a performance art

A tent stage and mud houses added visual appeal, but there was little information available. I’m curious to see how I can use this space and I wanna take this art form forward to many places. I’m grateful for such initiatives.

🎥 This is part of Ram Lal ji’s documentation for Meri Jadon ke Dhaage, supported by India Foundation for the Arts ( )

When womxn rise up to support other womxn, the oppressive world doesn’t stand a chance against us.

Join coach Rini for a super fun womxn’s strength party where we will experiment with our individual and collective strengths, listen to some great music, share some stories and yummy snacks, and offer support to a very important womxn’s initiative :)

Ek Potlee Ret Ki has been working with a group of incredible womxn from Kashmir to help them create the first-ever anonymous contemporary music album!

We are at a stage where the album is going into post production and then will be released🎶🎵

We are raising funds to ensure this album is at industry standards and our womxn artists get the visibility and traction they deserve.

Your contribution, no matter how small or large, will pave way for a new generation of womxn artists ✨

Entry by donation.
Dm to reserve a spot!

For our third post in the Kashmir documentation series, we reflect on one of the most intimate and comforting spaces in a Kashmiri home: the dastarkhwān. More than just a dining spread, the dastarkhwān is a space of warmth, storytelling, and togetherness, carrying centuries of cultural memory through its folds.

In a place where everyday life is shaped by both beauty and uncertainty, gathering around the dastarkhwān isn’t just about sharing food - it’s about holding space for each other.

Swipe to read the stories and personal moments that unfolded for us around the dastarkhwān. Conversations around Kashmir’s cultural life are rare, and documenting these everyday practices matters. Support our work by engaging with this post - like, share, and leave us your reflections in the comments.

नागौर का अमर सिंह राठौड़ किला - वही जगह जहाँ उनकी कहानी इतिहास में दर्ज हुई। इस वीर गाथा को देश-दुनिया तक पहुँचाने में कठपुतली कलाकारों का बड़ा योगदान रहा है। लेकिन विडंबना है कि आज भी यहाँ उनके लिए कोई स्थायी मंच नहीं है।

‘मेरी जड़ों के धागे’ (IFA परियोजना) के तहत मैं एक घूमता-फिरता कठपुतली मंच तैयार कर रहा हूँ, जो अमर सिंह राठौड़ की कहानी को फिर से जीवित करेगा। ये तस्वीरें उसी यात्रा की हैं - उस जगह की, जहाँ से यह कहानी फिर से आवाज़ बनेगी।

हमारे लोक कलाकारों ने सदियों से इतिहास को ज़िंदा रखा है। अब समय है कि उनके लिए भी मंच बनें।

Amar Singh Rathore’s fort in Nagaur - the very place where his story became legend. It’s through the art of puppetry that this story has reached people far beyond Rajasthan. And yet, the artists who have carried this legacy still don’t have a dedicated space here.

As part of Meri Jadon Ke Dhaage (IFA project), Ram Lal ji( )is building a travelling puppetry stage to bring this story alive again. These images are from his visit to the fort - a step towards creating a stage that honours this history.

Our folk artists have kept our histories alive for generations. It’s time we build spaces for them too.

✨ Subscribe to our YouTube channel to watch videos of this project -Meri Jadon Ke Dhaage - under our series Ab Bolegi Katputhli. Link in bio.