Shivya Nath's column: The boundaries between the village and the city should be erased beautifully

After spending a month full of adventure in the Andes Mountains of Ecuador, I was enjoying spring in New York and preparing to return to India. My heart was restless for the Himalayas and the warm people of the villages there. I felt that it was finally time to make the 11-hour journey from Kathgodam to Sarmoli. Sarmoli is a beautiful village located in Munsiyari in Pithoragarh district, which has been voted the best tourist village in the country by the Government of India. I came to know about mountaineering enthusiast Malika Virdi and her work in starting a homestay in Sarmoli. So I asked her if I could stay in those mountains for some time. Then she told me about a tradition that takes place there every year in the summer – the week-long Himal Kala Sutra festival. In this, the people of Sarmoli run a 20 km marathon together. It involves climbing to an altitude of about 8,000 feet (just to hear!). They go to the mountains and watch the birds. That year's festival also included a week-long meditation-yoga programme and a digital literacy workshop. So far, I had spent a lot of time in the small villages of Kumaon and saw the problems of the people there. Collecting firewood, walking long distances to reach school or the nearest health centre, social problems – where is the time left for things like preparing for a marathon, going out in search of local birds or digital literacy? But the days spent in Sarmoli changed my perception of the divide between rural and urban life in India. Over the years, I had begun to believe that most of the traditional ways of living of rural Indian communities would die out with the new generation. And for this, they cannot be blamed, because each one of us wants modern amenities and an easy life. But Malika, Theo and Ram's vision was simple: to introduce the locals to the useful things of the urban world and connect them to the online world. At the same time, encouraging them to preserve their understanding of the traditional world, such as preserving natural water sources, taking pride in their language, and maintaining an innate sense of hospitality to outsiders. The youth of the village may want to go out for work, but they should not have to leave the village due to compulsion or boredom. I also sat in the meetings of the 'Mati Sangathan' in Sarmoli. It is a women's self-help group. I heard heart-wrenching stories of domestic violence faced by women in the region and saw some cases with my own eyes. I also saw how the 'Mati Sangathan' has played an important role in supporting and empowering these women. Even as they grappled with serious issues at the individual and collective level, they were playing multiple roles simultaneously – homestay operators, entrepreneurs, guides, workers and housewives. Yet, not a day went by without a chance to share jokes, light-hearted banter and gratitude for life. When the summer festivities began, I was surprised to see more than half of the people in the village performing Tadasana at the yoga workshop! When I came to know about the workshop, a strange thought came to my mind – why not encourage the people of Sarmoli to share their stories directly with the world through Instagram? But the idea did not turn out to be as strange as I thought. After taking basic training on Instagram and then learning some photography tips from a fellow traveller, the people there have now started running their own Instagram channel. In this, they put their lives, mountains, seasons and stories in front of the world in their own voice. I thought that their enthusiasm would gradually wane, but the reach and participation of people of this account has not only increased, but their storytelling and photography abilities have also flourished – that too despite limited features, simple phones, and limited knowledge of the English language. The boundaries between village and city should be erased just like that! The people of this village are now running their own Instagram channel. In this, they put their lives, mountains, seasons and stories in front of the world. Their storytelling and photography abilities have only improved over time. (These are the author's own views)