Interactive Workshops with Students: Oral History

Oral history workshops are an integral part of the projects organised by SPARROW. Women’s songs, folk-songs, ballads and stories have traditionally constituted the oral history of our culture. This time-honoured mode of the spoken word is a living presence among us still and has a contemporary relevance. Giving voice and language to experiences that have hitherto remained muted and marginalized becomes an important act in the preservation of oral histories. Articulating what has been silenced, would, moreover, lead to communication, sharing and interaction. In the course of two years SPARROW invited a number of women to speak to small audiences. These are women, whose lives, however interesting, have remained hidden, and whose experiences, however relevant, have remained unheeded. After every workshop SPARROW brought out a booklet based on the proceedings of the workshop, in the form of a biographical note. Following are the workshops SPARROW held from 1994 to 1999 on some issues and with women from various walks of life.