Visualizing Khasak: An Interactive Spatial Narrative based on the novel Khasakkinte Ithihasam


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Creator/Artist: Vishnu K

Category: Interaction Design

Document: P3 Project

Batch: 2017-2019

Source: India,   IDC IIT Bombay

Period:  2009-2018

Medium: Report pdf

Supervisor: Prof. Venkatesh Rajamanickam


Detailed Description

Khasakkinte Ithihasam is considered one of the most important works of fiction in Malayalam literature. The novel was written by O.V. Vijayan and published in 1969. Khasak, the fictional village in which the novel is set, is inspired by a real village named Thasrak and holds a pivotal position in Vijayan’s narration. Literary cartography works are not new, but most of the work in the domain is based on Western literary works. The development of geo-technologies and visualisation techniques has created increased interest in the domain of literary cartography, as it creates opportunities for new ways of analysis and interpretation of literature and takes the domain to a larger group of audiences and practitioners. The project visualises the fictional village of Khasak and designs an interactive spatial narrative based on the novel Khasakkinte Ithihasam. The project focuses on a relatively unexplored theme in the novel, the ecology of Khasak, to create the spatial narrative. The outcome of the project is a network of interactive 360-degree illustrations, which visualises important settings in Khasak and tells the story of Khasak’s ecology. The design will be evaluated for its usability and the narrative experience, and the results will inform the final design.


Reference Links:
https://dsource.in/case-study/visualizing-khasak