The Big Campaign took off this Friday, 30th March 2012, with a press gathering at Chowrasta, Darjeeling. With Acoustic Traditional volunteers wearing Big Foot Slippers and storyteling sessions for young school children, the launch was an important milestone in our work to promote disappearing myths, legends and oral history of indigenous communities.

The campaign will include painting a huge water colour artwork measuring around 20,000 square feet and youth mobilisation work in view of organising a march or a walk on the 15th of May 2012 (also the display date for the artwork) - a day which we have collectively come to name it as the "Big Foot Day".

While the painting will focus on revisiting the foklore of Yeti, the campaign to involve young people and story enthusiasts all across the country is an effort to create an opportunity to start talking about the various such myths and legends in the country.

What is the Campaign all about?

It's about creating an opportunity to initiate dialogue on our indigenous myths, legends and amazingly rich oral history and the need to preserve them. It's about making an effort to highlight their relevance in urban India or for that matter in the world. There are various linkages between these oral traditions of storytelling and our diverse spiritual, scientific and cultural heritage.

The Campaign has two components:

A. A giant (20,000 sq. ft) watercolour painting based on the folklore of Yeti

B. A walk wearing Big Foot slippers

Through the campaign we will be talking to various schools, colleges, NGO's, public institutions and the general public about our disappearing ethnic history (especially of mountain and forest based communities) and enrolling their support by way of participating in the walk/march and the completion of the artwork.

Through the campaign, we will also be fundraising through the sale of the over-sized Big Foot Slippers, which people could wear at the walk, and through the purchase of a piece of the historic artwork on Yeti. The funds raised will not only help realise the camapign objectives but also support the initiation of a Centre for the Study of Indigenous Storytelling Traditions in Darjeeling.

A fundraiser is also planned through the campaign which will help support our new initiative: the start-up of a Centre for the Study of Indigenous Storytelling Traditions. It will be the first Centre in the country to dedicatedly study, promote and preserve tribal oral history, especially with the support of shamans and their traditions of storytelling.

You can help support this unique and a historic campaign (in many ways) by way of buying a piece of the painting (being made) and / or by ordering your pair of Big Foot Slippers. For more on the campaign and how to book your art or make a purchase, please visit our campaign page here.

How you can Support...