In the field of art lokavidya and organized knowledge in this sub-continent have always been stongly related and interacted with each other leading to enrichment of both. Philosophers tell us that loka and shastra in the world of Indian art have never been opposed to each other, on the contrary it is the practice and convention among the people which has acted as the sustaining criteria. The debate in this respect uses the terms ‘desi’ and ‘margi’ for what is situated and grows in the society at large and the organized institutional forms and expressions. It is generally believed that the two were never hierarchised. One can find rich and relevant discourses in this respect in the writings of Nihar Ranjan Rai, Kapila Vatsyayan and Namwar Singh among others.

It is the understanding of the Ashram that in the present information age the rising new paradigms, theories and philosophies of knowledge would gain immensely from the people’s point of view, if initiatives from the practice and philosophy of art assert their presence in the world of knowledge.It would be our endeavour to take to the center stage in a people’s knowledge movement a new discourse and practice from the fields of art, language, design and media.