Nirmalya Roy has a post-graduate diploma in rural management and over 18 years of development experience in research, communication and capacity building projects across India. He has implemented culture and development projects with folk artists across West Bengal, Bihar, Odisha, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, and Assam. He trained folk artist collectives in Balasore, Kalahandi, Mayurbhanj, Keonjhar and Kandamal in Odisha on folk media-based social communication. He has undertaken research on the cultural sustainability (viability) of various ICH elements, designed audiovisual documentaries on folk art forms, and designed and implemented capacity-building workshops with artists. Recently, he has been involved in documentation of art and craft of ethnic communities in Darjeeling hills. He will be the India Research Specialist for the project. He will lead the documentation of ICH elements, use of the documentation for promoting the ICH, and capacity-building in the three identified communities, building on his extensive experience in these areas.

This research project, Heritage Sensitive Intellectual Property and Marketing strategies: India (HIPAMS - INDIA), is funded by the British Academy's Sustainable Development Programme, supported under the UK Government's Global Challenges Research Fund 2018-2021.