Monday 14 October 2013

Dushhera: Nasik

A few images from the Dusshera celebrations in Nashik, Maharastra.


Based on the Hindu epic of good triumphing over evil, Dusshera celebrates the defeat of the demon god Ravana by the hero Ram and his followers.



The temples were full all day with devotees making offerings to the gods, kids were dressed up as the hero
Hanuman, and in the evening a huge effigy of Ravana was burned in true wicker man style.




Wednesday 2 October 2013

Gandhijayanti


" First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, then you win"




It's Gandhi's birthday today. The Mahatma was born 144 years ago and 65 years after his death he's still the revered father of the nation, an icon to all Indians.

Looking back at some of his principles and ideas, his approach to non-violent protest and the abolition of the caste system, it's sad to see although India has moved forward so much since his struggle for independence, many of the same problems remain  in today's modern society. Politicians are still filling their pockets at the expense of the common man, the dark shadow of caste is still hanging over the rural areas, honour killings continue, race riots explode at the smallest spark, rape is becoming more prevalant, and you only need to walk through one of the poorer areas of any major city to see that poverty is a long way from being a thing of the past.

I think Gandhi would have been proud of many aspects of India today. Cities are booming, young people are taking an active role in politics and Indians are respected all over the world for their hard work and diligence in bettering themselves and their families. But in this explosion of wealth and prosperity many are left behind, cast aside as obstacles by the get rich quick crowd who seem to pull all the strings at the higher levels, shoved into the corners so as not to be a hindrance, a burden.




The Times of India today runs with the headline " Big Daddy's Day Today". Not on the front page, but page four. The previous pages are full of stories on terrorism, tit for tat arguments between princeling politicians, mining mafias, corrupt minsters, female suicides, and millionaire businessman buying European stately homes, the normal daily news feed for a country that still has twenty five percent of it's population unable to read or write.

I love India. Really. I love this country more than any other for it's warmth and humanity that can be found every day playing out on the streets. I love the character of the people that struggle endlessly but still manage to smile at a foreigner shoving a camera in their face, the glint in the eye of the children, full of hopes and dreams that they'll be the next one to make it big, to succeed against all the odds. Gandhi saw this, lived this, based his principles on the good in humanity to overcome together, unified and working as one towards a better world. Let's hope one day his dreams are fulfilled.

The following is written on the wall in his Ashram in Ahmedabad. Food for thought for all those who value their own riches over that of the richness of their own society.


 " I will give you a talisman. whenever you are in doubt, or when self becomes too much with you, apply the following test. Recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man whom you may have seen, and ask yourself, if the step you contemplate is going to be of any use to him. Will he gain anything by it? Will it restore him to control over his own life and destiny? 
 In other words, will it lead to swaraj for the hungry and spiritually starving millions? Then you will find your doubt and your self melting away."


(Photos taken at Sabarmati Ashram, Ahmedabad, 2 Oct, 2013)

Sunday 29 September 2013

Sunday 15 September 2013

Wednesday 4 September 2013

Up in the mountains working on a new website. Always nice to go back and find stuff that got left behind.


    Omkareshwar. 2012



    Hanoi. 2010



    Ramallah,.2009



    Vientiane. 2011

Friday 30 August 2013

Monsoon Skies


  " Clouds come floating into my life, no longer to carry rain or usher storm,
    but to add colour to my sunset sky. "

Rabindranath Tagore













Friday 16 August 2013

Tuesday Rose Productions


Man on local bus, Hanoi

Some of my Lomo work has been featured on the Tuesday Rose Productions homepage. The company started this year and aims to fill the gap in the local Vietnamese film market and revive the culture of home grown cinema.

It's a great setup, run by creative people and i wish them all the luck in the world.

The images can be seen at the following link  http://tuesdayrose.com/gallery




Thursday 1 August 2013

Pattan Valley

Entrance to Trilokinath temple, sacred to both Buddhists and Hindus.

Bus passing a goods lorry on the road into the Pattan Valley. The driver later told me he'd driven across all the Indian states except nine over the last twenty years.

Woman working the fields outside Trilokinath village.

Roadside shrine on the way to Udaipur, Pattan Valley.

Friday 26 July 2013


 A woman walks past the crowd at the weekly Ladakhi league football match.

Saturday 20 July 2013

TakThok Festival


Hands of Tashi Putit, 85. Sakti village, Ladakh.


Sometimes it's hard to take out your camera .

Visiting a mask dance festival in the Indus valley this week I became part of something I try so hard to avoid, something that always feels slightly wrong.

I take photos. Of people, buildings, whatever catches my eye. And sometimes I don't ask before I do so. But when I'm shooting people, most of the fun is the interaction, the little chat that can come from a simple meeting, the invitation to a house or the introduction to a family.

At this festival I didn't see a lot of that happening. In fact, quite the opposite.

The old lady above was a perfect example of Buddhist calm. She sat there zen like, twirling her mala, almost oblivious to the five long lenses stuck in her face. Maybe she sees it every year, tourists travelling in groups, pockets stuffed with memory cards and brand new SLR's slung over their shoulders, jumping out of buses to take the same photos in five minute bursts before hopping back on board and speeding to the next destination.

It's not the way of travelling that bothers me. Most people only get a couple of weeks off work a year, and those coming this far to Ladakh are obviously the more adventurous ones, travelling far to experience a culture completely different from their own. Respect to them.

It's the zoo mentality I can't understand. Look, shoot, run. Then move on to the next local who looks vaguely authentic, vaguely exotic.

I shot her hands because to me they summed up her life. Creased and twisted, baked from the desert sun, they tell far more of a story than any portrait of her face could.

As promised, I printed the picture today and took it to the post office to send to her village. The woman behind the counter wouldn't take any money, instead she called over a local bus driver so he could deliver it to her personally.

He looked at the picture and smiled. A smile worth more than a thousand portraits.

Tuesday 16 July 2013

Leh and the Indus Valley


    Ritual mask to prepare devotees for their entrance to hell.




 
     Thiksey Monastery, Indus Valley



     Prayer books, Leh Palace



     Monks at Soma Gompa 

   

    View from Thiksey, Indus Valley