Punjabi Audiobooks Project

Punjabi Audiobooks Project, spearheaded by the Punjabi Wikimedia Community, aims to meet the evolving demands of the present era by creating audiobooks using content from Punjabi Wikisource. The project serves multiple purposes, including catering to the interests of the people, promoting literature among new generations, and providing engaging material for those who may be illiterate or elderly. By converting written works into audiobooks, the project makes literature accessible to a wider audience, particularly individuals who face reading challenges. Additionally, it strives to foster a love for Punjabi language and culture among youth, while also offering productive and enriching content for individuals seeking meaningful leisure activities. By leveraging the collaborative nature of the Wikimedia movement, the project contributes to the preservation and promotion of Punjabi literature, expanding its reach and availability.

Punjabi script is written in two various scripts Gurmukhi and Shahmukhi. Gurmukhi is utilized in India, and Shahmukhi is utilised in Pakistan (and each among their respective Diaspora communities. People of both countries learn their respective Punjabi script thus folks of Pakistan are unable/face difficulties to understand Gurmukhi and Indian Punjabies also face the same regarding Shahmukhi. This is the main challenge in exchanging literature between the two regions. In present days, many people, even though they are interested in literature, they don’t have time or interest to read books, and there is an increasing trend of audio books to bring more visibility and usage to literature. The project seeks to engage volunteers from the Punjabi-speaking community and beyond to record high-quality audio versions of Punjabi literary works. These audiobooks will be made available on Wikimedia platforms, such as Wikimedia Commons, allowing users to freely access and download them. We have created 9 full Audiobooks and some stories that can be found here: [1]

Objectives

• Accessibility: Increase access to Punjabi literature by providing audiobook versions for individuals with visual impairments or those who prefer listening to content.
• Preservation: Preserve and promote Punjabi language and literature by creating a digital archive of audiobooks.
• Community Engagement: Foster a vibrant community of volunteers passionate about Punjabi language and literature, who actively contribute to the creation and improvement of the audiobook collection.
• Diversity: This project focuses to bring people from different professions and skills in the Wiki community and involvement of multi skills will build a strong community.

Activities

• Content Selection: Identify a diverse range of Punjabi literary works, including novels, short stories, poetry, and non-fiction, that are in the public domain or obtain necessary permissions from copyright holders.
• Recording Sessions: Organize recording sessions with volunteers who have access to appropriate recording equipment and a quiet environment. Volunteers will be provided with guidelines and resources for recording high-quality audio.
• Editing and Quality Control: Perform necessary editing and quality control checks on recorded audio to ensure clarity, consistency, and adherence to project guidelines.
• Uploading and Cataloging: Upload the finalized audiobooks to Wikimedia Commons, following established categorization and tagging conventions.

Get Involved

The success of the Punjabi Audiobooks Project relies on the participation and dedication of volunteers. If you are interested in contributing to the project, there are several ways you can get involved:

• Recording Volunteers: If you have access to suitable recording equipment and a quiet environment, you can contribute by recording Punjabi literary works. Join the project and collaborate with other volunteers to create high-quality audiobooks.
• Editing and Quality Control: If you have experience in audio editing and quality control, you can assist in refining the recorded audiobooks to ensure they meet the project's standards.
• Promotion and Outreach: If you have skills in marketing, social media, or community outreach, you can help promote the Punjabi Audiobooks Project and engage with potential volunteers and stakeholders.

Project Coordinators

Project Lead: Jagseer S Sidhu
Co-lead: Nitesh Gill
Volunteers: Dugal Harpreet, Kirti Gill, Gaurav Jhammat, Gill Jassu, Sahil Kataria, Amandeep Khiva, Rajdeep Ghuman, Aman Chajla, Mulkh Singh