Amir Malik
Fellow
Amir Malik, freelance journalist for over five years, is the 2022 nominee for The Human Rights & Religious Freedom Journalism Awards, US. A storyteller, he derives his passion from peoples’ lives, their courageous ways to outsmart death everyday. He believes journalism is a tool of resistance of people against power. Amir goes where stories are. As a freelance journalist, he has experienced that ‘beat journalism’ limits journalism. In the field of storytelling in India, where stories are abundant, there’s hardly any limit to the number of stories one would get to write. Amir has covered covid pandemic in Delhi and the historic farmers’ protests at the gates of Delhi and investigative crimes of the power during the Delhi riots 2020. He has reported from Punjab, Haryana, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Tamil Nadu — in all rural India.
Punjab school rises like a phoenix from ashes of neglect
A 70-year-old former alumnus, a benevolent family and a dedicated teacher resurrect a dilapidated government primary school in a Punjab village, which now offers services like free transportation and even showers to students.
Turning towards golden grass to conserve great Indian bustard
In an effort to save the endangered great Indian bustard, farmers in Rajasthan are regrowing the sewan grass that provides a good habitat for the birds.
Reviving Pattu-weaving in Barmer thread by thread
Young weaver Kheta Ram and his group are preserving Pattu weaving, by crafting fabrics steeped in history and creating a market for this traditional art.
‘Helicopter cars’: Bihar mechanic turns cars into ‘choppers’
Bored during the pandemic lockdown in 2020, a mechanic and his two brothers in Bihar’s Saran district started converting cars into helicopter raths (chariots), which are now a craze during weddings.
Puppets in Jaisalmer museum preserve old tradition
Storytelling through puppetry is being kept alive at this museum, but more needs to be done if the ancient art form is to thrive.
Rajasthan music school trains ustads of tomorrow
Gunsar Folk Music Institute of Jaisalmer is wowing audiences across the world with soulful songs by its students from the poor Manganiyar community.
Millets of Mewar restoring glory of forgotten grains
This Udaipur restaurant is tantalising taste buds and nourishing the body of patrons by dishing out nutritious millet-based meals.
Atheism library attempts to stoke curiosity in Bihar village
Apna Atheism United Library is a rare initiative that aims to promote the art of questioning and propagate scientific temperament.
Teachers provide skill training to Udaipur jail prisoners
Inmates are being taught several things – from music and dance to yoga and food processing – so that they heal their scars and rediscover self-esteem.
Garden in Thar desert stays green despite climate crisis
Bada Bagh in Jaisalmer has centuries-old trees and continues to defy starkly arid constantly changing weather conditions.
Udaipur’s specially-abled cyclist is unstoppable
Govind Kharol cycles against the shackles of stigma and stereotype with no right hand and only two deformed fingers in his left hand.
Music band rings in new dawn for ex-prisoners
Naya Savera is a unique band comprising former inmates of Udaipur Central Jail out to shrug off their past for redeeming themselves.
Add Jaisalmer’s desert festival to your bucket list
Good food, great music and frenzied camel racing pull crowds from across India to Rajasthan’s four-day desert festival.
Last Rajasthan border village suffers separation pangs
Residents of Tanot near the India-Pakistan border have been waiting in vain since partition to meet relatives who became Pakistanis.
Asia’s ‘biggest’ underground library in Rajasthan has no readers
In the middle of and, more notably, underneath the Thar desert, Bhadariya Library in Jaisalmer houses row upon row of books that very few people come to read these days.