People's Archive of Rural India (PARI) is a digital journalism platform in India. Founded by veteran journalist Palagummi Sainath, PARI is a volunteer-run rural journalism platform that specializes in covering rural labour and the working lives of Indians through its network of reporters, professional filmmakers, film editors, photographers, documentary filmmakers and journalists (television, online and print).
PARI is both a living journal and an archive. It generates and hosts reporting on the countryside that is current and contemporary, while also creating a database of already published stories, reports, videos and audios from various sources. PARI is a multi-lingual platform that has content in up to ten Indian languages, including English, which is translated and reviewed by volunteers. PARI, as an online photojournalism interface, showcases the occupational, linguistic and anthropological diversity in India. All of PARI’s own content comes under the Creative Commons. Public access to PARI is free and the site is run by The CounterMedia Trust. Anyone can contribute to PARI through writing, shooting and recording videos on the everyday lives of everyday people.
Much of what makes the countryside unique could be gone in 20-30 years. We are losing worlds and voices within rural India of which future generations will know little or nothing. There is one place future generations the world over, including Indians, will visit more and more: the Internet. PARI aims to use the internet as a medium to build – as a public resource – a living, breathing journal and an archive aimed at recording people’s lives. Many worlds, one website. More voices and distinct languages than have ever met on one site.
PARI is trying to create subtitling in multiple Indian languages for each documentary they generate. The site's AudioZone will, over time, hold thousands of clips – conversations, songs, poetry – in every Indian language that they can record. PARI aims to help create informative and lively resources for students, teachers, schools, colleges and universities. As broadband access grows, it should mean lower costs for many students, as PARI is a free-access-to-public site. PARI is also building a Resources section, where they aim to put up reports related to rural India from organizations such as the Planning Commission (now NITI Aayog), the United Nations, etc.
