Back in 2015, we (pykih) visualized the Census of India and Changes made to the Constitution of India. The later was done along with data journalist Rukmini Shrinivasan from The Hindu and the Vidhi Center. The project was well-received. Since then, we have wanted to start our own site or initiative with visual essays on issues that matter.
Historically, India had a tradition to setup Samhitas — collectives of experts who work together to build systematic collection of knowledge within a single topic. Often we are aware of these things but not really conscious of them. The knowledge compiled by these Samhitas encoded knowledge for centuries to come.
In these essays, we want to cover —
- Methods: How to do things
- Systems: How things work in the real world
- Contrast: Compare and contrast two narratives on the same issues
- Networks: See how people, places, things and organizations are related
Given our history, we want the essays to be —
- Structured/Data-driven
- Visual -- Over the years, we have realized that good visualizations can help people structure, imagine and grasp complex ideas.
- Algorithmic
- Given the polarized environment in India, we want to stay away from topics/language that polarize and instead focus on strategic problems
- Additionally, we do not want to be in news and instead focus on things that do not change
- Published in a series of 9 articles related to one topic covering it from different perspectives. (shows -> seasons -> episodes)
- Each visual essay will be written as an article around various topics. These articles can then be mapped to create vertical around broader social issue. (URLs -> articles)
Below are some projects that have inspired us
