Remote Prayogillu is a temporary place set up in different locations around the world, utilizing museums, galleries, community centers, historical buildings, public places, or abandoned places to connect virtually with the physical Prayogillu in Vellulla, Telangana, India.The vision for the future of PrayogIllu is a network of remote, representational, movable spaces in different locations around the world offering a window-like experience into and out of the actual PrayogIllu in India. This network will facilitate exchanges between disparate local cultures to build a culturally diverse and socially engaged, world-wide PrayogIllu community. These are the ways this project builds a strong global community. Therefore, Prayogillu offers various kinds of dialogues and conversations, in-person and virtually to build a vast community of social engagement and cultural context.

 

PrayogIllu is my ancestral house in Vellulla village, Telanagna state, India and it is artistically conceptualized as a site-specific, interdisciplinary, and alternate place for experimentation in rural-global connection, as well as community building. It aims to blur and reconfigure both social engagement in the rural world, and rural and global cultures. PrayogIllu is a combination of two words: ‘Prayog’ is a Hindi word that means ‘experiment’, and ‘Illu’ is a Telegu word that means ‘house’. PrayogIllu is an interdisciplinary place that fosters engagement with students and villagers in a rural area with various programs like community library, virtual lectures, video screening, digital literacy, experiential learning, foreign languages (German & English), yoga, dance, group games, arts, artist in residency, artists and community, women empowerment programs and lectures, sports, and competitions.

 

There are two types of Remote PrayogIllus. Firstly, Remote PrayogIllu: initiated in any historical places, museums, galleries, public schools, community centers, or abandoned places to transform the place into Prayogllu to connect the local community with the community in Vellulla. This way historical and abandoned places will again flourish and social engagement and community building will happen. Remote PrayogIllu will connect with the actual PrayogIllu in India for rural and global culture sharing and connection. Secondly, a movable house will be installed in museums, galleries, or public spaces. Remote PrayogIllu will invite experts from the local community to this temporary house to conduct virtual lectures that will connect remotely with the actual PrayogIllu in India, as well as remote PrayogIllus across the globe simultaneously.

 

There is a triangular cultural dialogue or Multi between the actual space of Prayogillu and other temporary spaces: Remote PrayogIllu and Guest Speaker. The Remote PrayogIllu has similar furniture as Prayogillu and includes tables, benches, chairs, bookshelves, TV, etc. Viewers who are in the temporary space get the immersive experience of the representational space. Viewers get an opportunity to engage with the temporary Prayogillu by reading books and observing the actual Prayogillu room through an internet-connected television.