The first of part of the project was to collect
stories, songs and folklore from the villagers
that have not been documented, and are
only preserved by being passed on from
generation to generation.

Joglekar observed that most of the stories
that people were narrating were coming out
of some superstitious beliefs. These kinds of
legends were not what the artist had
expected to encounter, a realization that
also shaped her understanding of how
contemporary folklore is interpreted over
time.

Joglekar eventually asked the school aged
children to share stories and songs that they
had grown up hearing in their homes,
especially those that had been shared by the
grandparents and the older generations of
their families. The school children
responded to the artists’ requests by sharing
the poetry of famed Marathi poets, such as
Bahinabai, G.D. Madgulkar and V.V.
Shirwadkar. It was apparent that in the initial
earmarked sites, school children’s education
was focused on learning culture through
canonized texts, and the preservation of
traditional aural cultures had already seen significant decline.
As the objective of this project was to focus
on the lesser known but equally enthralling
folk stories, verse and songs, the artist
continued her search. After traveling
through many small villages, she came
across a site that was surrounded by small
Adivasi villages or Padas. Joglekar identified
the Padsare Zilla Raigad School, which has a
student body of almost 350 children, the
majority of whom hail from Adivasi families.
Although shy and hesitant at first, the
children eventually gained confidence to
open up and sing their traditional folk songs.
These songs were very impressionistic, and
had a possibility of creating associated
imagery, accompanied by visuals and
colourful illustrations. Most of these songs
began with descriptions of nature, and then
changed into humorous contemporary
situations. Some songs discussed events
from their daily lives, or elucidated themes
of farming. The children also shared songs
that were traditionally sung at times of
celebration such as marriages and
weddings. The songs had the flavor of their
environment, and utilized a dialect that was
different from widely used forms of Marathi.
Based on the narratives of these songs, and
the surrounding natural atmosphere, the
artist created a variety of illustrations for the
school children