The Gram Art Project team wanted to spread the message about the value of water, an asset which is becoming scarce the world over.

In response to the issue of limited infrastructure for sanitation and associated health risks and disease, Gram proposed to work on concept of Ecological Sanitation Irrigation, a method of waste recycling that reuses toilet waste as fertilizer. To support their efforts of promoting good sanitary practice in the village, and to raise awareness around the issue of limited resources and infrastructure in village areas, Gram organized an International Artist Residency. They invited ten artists to stay in the village and collaborated with the local village communities, to create projects or art works related to these issues of sustainability and sanitation.

They created an open call for applications, and received interest from artists across the globe. Eventually a group of ten artists from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Serbia were invited to be residents in Paradsinga for a period of ten days.

Under the Gram Residency in June 2014, the team of artists introduced a new philosophy that could lead to an improved living condition for the village community. While toilets are the products of this philosophy, art is the means by which the group attempted to disseminate their ideas to proliferate further. This project explores the inter relations and interdependency of ecology, sanitation and irrigation. Hence this project becomes an inter disciplinary phenomena engaging with biology, hygiene, sociology, psychology, agriculture, art, literature, history, music, dance and several other disciplines.

During the 10 day residency, artists endeavored to collaborate with local villagers and create awareness among them through performances, theater, storytelling, poster making and different media which will communicate better with villagers and effectively work on the concern. During the residency, the Gram Art project team also made Eco-Sani-Irri toilet model to talk to people about its working so that artists, school children and villagers could witness and take advantage of the opportunity to become educated about the toilets functioning and use. The invited resident artists would also be able to spread awareness about the toilets and their use through the artistic interventions and projects.

Over the course of the residency Gram invited to resident artists to participate in discussions and sessions regarding the issues and concerns with the Eco Sani Irri toilets. Although most of the artists had proposed specific projects when they applied for the residency some of their ideas and concepts were conceived, developed further and even entirely changed during the discussions. The core which the artist came up with went through series of changes and transformations. This was possible mainly because the artists were living at Gram. The change in landscape and cultural surroundings had its own effect in the minds of the artists.