writings of a fervent soul and other nonsense

Continues...

2008-08-01T23:22:00.001+05:30

Photographs and words continue at this url:

http://vivekm.com/blog

On the road, Meerut and Meeranpur

2007-03-19T19:41:00.000+05:30

5

4

3

2

1

Gokarna

2007-03-15T08:44:00.000+05:30

A Brahmin at his dwelling called Shadakshari

Mens Salon, Gokarna

2007-03-14T18:06:00.000+05:30

Gokarna, Main Road

2007-03-14T09:51:00.000+05:30

Gokarna

2007-03-13T12:55:00.000+05:30

Malpe Beach, Udupi

2007-03-13T09:17:00.000+05:30

Paajaka

2007-03-09T13:48:00.000+05:30

The home where Madhwacharya was born, some 800 years ago.

Kaup Beach

2007-03-08T23:12:00.000+05:30

weekend shoot at Shivajinagar

2006-05-03T12:13:00.002+05:30

weekend shoot at Shivajinagar, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

Malleshwaram flower market

2006-05-03T12:13:00.001+05:30

Malleshwaram flower market, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

Shivajinagar

2006-05-03T12:13:00.000+05:30

Shivajinagar, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

kanakapura

2006-03-24T09:06:00.000+05:30

fVN10-copy/onassignment/GG, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

On a trail of mystery and enchantment

2006-03-16T18:55:00.000+05:30

First light on the watchtower, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

darkness screams
with a thousand bolts
the forest lights up
in an eerie glow

The muted thunders beyond the silhouette of the mountains kept the dark grey skies in a ceaseless flicker. The rain was imminent, it was easy to say. The moon was small and high but bright enough to light up the track that had just brought us here. It was the same beautiful feeling of letting one’s thoughts roam as we perched on the stairs of the watchtower. One of us was soon quizzing the rest about astronomy, another was reminiscing about the day’s adventure and I was trying hard at capturing the lightning on a digital camera. Our conversation was soon reduced to a trickle and we were all beginning to enjoy the silence that prevailed. We were simply in love with time.

We, five of the city mortals, were recent victims of the forest department’s latest venture of promoting eco-tourism in the much dreaded forests in the Chamarajanagar area (thanks to Veerappan), and we weren’t complaining one bit. We had trekked up to Jodigere from Bedaguli that evening passing through deciduous jungles that were just taking on the brown and yellow hues of the approaching summer. At Jodigere a picturesque watchtower in the middle of the wildlife-infested forests, that serenely fitted the picture of a utopian forest dwelling that I had had, awaited us. We were only glad that we had to spend the night here even though it didn’t promise us a good night’s sleep.

We left the stairs and gathered around an oil lamp inside the watchtower. Words resumed once again, tales of the forest from our guide kept us engrossed. The rains followed soon, lasted for an hour, and finally left behind the winds to howl in the dark. After some divine sambar and rice, courtesy our cook Dasappa, we were soon in slumber land.

The morning was bright and still. The sun warmed our skin and spirits and we were soon off tracking wild gaur. At nine we said goodbye to the watchtower and headed east for a long day’s trek. We passed by the twins lakes that gave Jodigere its name, walked through a beautiful stretch of shola forest and approached a mountain pass. The views just after we crossed the pass were simply inspiring. Mountains lay in layers of grey and blue, some looked real, some ethereal. The rest of our route was evident from here. We were to trek for quite a distance on the Karnataka-Tamil Nadu border before we turned left to head for Bylore, the trek’s end.

The forest was beautiful. Some trees were almost barren and shedding leaves while some had the peppered leaves still on. Some seemed rebels, still green in the March heat. A wild gooseberry tree stood right on our path and we frantically picked up each piece of the fruit that had fallen on the ground. A wild jasmine shrub made us stop for a whiff of the seductive flowers. After a brief stop at a stream where the waters almost seemed stagnant, the trek got tougher and the path inclined upwards. After a few sweaty hours we finally hit the road out of the thickets. Our trek was over at Bylore.

Bylore is an innocent’s dream of a perfect village - a few tiled homes on an elevated earth, tall coconut palms on the fringes and verdant paddy fields on terraces, dark blue mountains in the horizon and a little lake to complete the picture! We really didn’t mind spending a couple of hours under the shade of a tree at Bylore before a local bus picked us up back to civilization. The journey has to end, but this time we were carrying home more than memories – the tingling after taste of the wild gooseberries and the scent of the jasmines from the jungle.

Memories

2006-03-07T22:12:00.000+05:30

I stay back on a summer day
Passing time and space
In another’s land

Time stays afloat
For more than a few moments
And I see more than other’s do

Stagnant water with a myriad hue
A little frog passing through
A mouse, a sapling and a heap of dried leaves

I lie down to smell the ground
That immaculate and fresh feeling
Can’t I be that small and nice?

2006-03-02T23:03:00.000+05:30

woods. gkvk.

A fire within

2006-02-10T00:14:00.000+05:30

Hands caressing the
your supple self
warm air in-between
the solitude
the comfort

Hair blinding the
forgotten me
a moment lost
in time and from
memory

Holy thoughts like
never said before
a grant a wish
only to disappear
like a whisper

Vermilion dreams

2006-02-09T13:19:00.000+05:30

srirangapatna, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

Scent of the greasy granite
hanging strong
on the gentle zephyr
an image of divinity

Banks of cold
water swirling yet
a sense of warmth
a river a friend

I stay on the steps
looking at the beings
utopian yet real
glad there I am.

A feeling, once again.

2006-02-06T22:47:00.000+05:30

I sulk once again
in a new meaning ness
a silent prayer
for the thing that
is above

I gather these with hands
cupped in remorse
a salubrious feeling
a solitary note

I, myself and within
a little flame of disease
of pleasure pain
that is there for me
mine alone.

Resting by the tombs

2006-02-02T10:36:00.000+05:30

Resting by the tombs, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

Selling for the festivity

2006-02-02T10:35:00.000+05:30

Selling for the festivity, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

Things go by

2006-02-02T10:34:00.000+05:30

Things go by, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

Planning the next day

2006-02-02T10:31:00.000+05:30

Planning the next day, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

Railway Station

2006-01-07T22:49:00.000+05:30

Railway Station, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

party

2006-01-07T22:47:00.001+05:30

party, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

party

2006-01-07T22:47:00.000+05:30

party, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

celebrations

2006-01-02T17:43:00.000+05:30

celebrations, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

seeing close

2005-12-22T15:40:00.000+05:30

seeing close, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

brahmagiris. dec 2005

Sholas/Brahmagiri

2005-12-22T15:37:00.000+05:30

Sholas/Brahmagiri, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

passing through the foggy sholas of the brahmagiris. dec 2005.

leaf of a rose

2005-11-30T15:14:00.000+05:30

leaf of a rose, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

a finishing frame

hours by the river

2005-11-30T14:59:00.000+05:30

hours by the river, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

Idle moments in Srirangapatna

srirangapatna

2005-09-28T22:38:00.000+05:30

srirangapatna, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

at the Jama Masjid

srirangapatna

2005-09-28T22:37:00.002+05:30

srirangapatna, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

srirangapatna

2005-09-28T22:37:00.001+05:30

srirangapatna, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

srirangapatna

2005-09-28T22:37:00.000+05:30

srirangapatna, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

sangam

srirangapatna

2005-09-28T22:36:00.000+05:30

srirangapatna, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

srirangapatna

2005-09-28T22:35:00.000+05:30

srirangapatna, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

another sadhu at sangam

srirangapatna

2005-09-26T18:27:00.000+05:30

srirangapatna, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

another one of the RBS inspired

srirangapatna

2005-09-26T18:26:00.000+05:30

srirangapatna, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

a sadhu on the banks of the sangam

srirangapatna

2005-09-26T18:25:00.000+05:30

srirangapatna, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

Raghubir's inspired

portrait of a photographer

2005-09-02T23:37:00.000+05:30

portrait of a photographer, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

rains, Ahmedabad

2005-09-02T23:36:00.002+05:30

rains, Ahmedabad, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

sleepy?

2005-09-02T23:36:00.001+05:30

sleepy?, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

rising sun over the heavens

2005-09-02T23:36:00.000+05:30

rising sun over the heavens, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

paul and katia

2005-06-20T20:29:00.000+05:30

paul and katia, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

i did an interesting assignment for a beautiful belgian couple recently. they have been in india for quite sometime and are absolutely in love with this land! they wanted me to shoot countryside, not necessarily beautiful landscapes, around bangalore and, they didn't mind if they occasionally became a part of the picture!

temple wall

2005-06-16T23:43:00.000+05:30

temple wall, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

'harsh' light, chose noon for the picture. not hinting at 'leading lines', nor 'rule of thirds'.
all three photographs previously unposted.

school on a saturday

2005-06-16T23:41:00.000+05:30

school on a saturday, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

full frame. not cropped. subject, however, cropped during composition. human element not added for 'scale', added for composition.

little boys around the temple

2005-06-16T23:38:00.000+05:30

little boys around the temple, originally uploaded by Vivek M.

shot in 'harsh light'. no details. deliberate underexposure. deliberate composition.

Open Your Eyes...

2005-06-16T23:03:00.000+05:30

Of late though i haven't been posting pictures, i have been browsing through my friends' journals and blogs and i am really angered by the comments that some people leave on the pictures they post. Here is my conclusion, mind you, my own:
1. Nobody seems to encourage creativity. everything is based on 'rules' in photography. what are the 'rules', sir?
2. Photography is reduced to mere 'attractive light'. not so. please.
3. Techniques, techniques. and more techniques. enough! here one, 'i think it would have been better if you have underexposed by a stop..' ha!
4. Everybody is licking each other's a***s. dead end.
i am really sorry to say.... i have never ever found the enthusiasm to comment on a single picture for the past few weeks. and reading other's comments brings a smirk that need not be translated. some comments are absolutely insane, bizzare and saying exaggerated would do injustice. i have plenty of examples and i better keep my mouth shut. and just watch.

My new blog!

2005-05-06T19:37:00.000+05:30

Am sorry. work is keeping me really busy that i have had little time to shoot and post pictures. but i will, atleast once a month or so. meanwhile i thought i should put down my interesting experiences from my hospital in a blog people could read and comment on. so here it is:
http://doconcall.blogspot.com/

sunday morning

2005-04-30T23:26:00.000+05:30

sunday morning, originally uploaded by Dr Vivek M L.

some pictures that i shot at one of Bangalore's busiest and oldest localities, the Majestic, on a sunday morning.

2005-03-29T15:32:00.000+05:30

Horsley hills

2005-03-29T15:26:00.000+05:30

Horsley hills

2005-03-29T14:58:00.000+05:30

Horsley hills

2005-03-29T14:48:00.000+05:30

Horsley hills

2005-03-24T11:47:00.000+05:30

fresh henna
on hands so
divine
growing darker
with aging
days
washed away
gently
with showers
of love...

2005-03-24T11:44:00.000+05:30

a warm breath
touch of your hair
thoughtless,
carried away

2005-03-22T23:22:00.000+05:30

penultimate shot, Gujarat.
ps: Thanks 50mm!

2005-03-20T23:11:00.000+05:30

a thick blanket
soon slithers
into place
to bring in
the early darkness
to cover
the secrets of
noisy depths.

Western Ghats at Kerala, one monsoon.

2005-03-20T00:06:00.000+05:30

temple festival, Thiruvannamalai

2005-03-16T23:25:00.000+05:30

the diu fort

2005-03-16T23:23:00.000+05:30

a policeman at the diu fort

2005-03-16T23:19:00.000+05:30

diu fort, entrance

2005-02-11T23:59:00.000+05:30

Nilgiris

2005-02-11T23:58:00.000+05:30

Nilgiris

2005-02-11T23:55:00.000+05:30

Nilgiris

Last Word

2005-02-11T12:31:00.000+05:30

Raghu Rai

The present state of creative photography in the country is very confused and leaves a lot to be desired.

Inevitably, India becomes the recipient of outdated technologies, fashions, and ideas from the West. This gets reflected in photography too. Photographers are expected to entertain through their work. But we are not visual entertainers.

Of course, there are enough of us who love to dabble in the medium and produce pretty pictures. Unfortunately, it is often this kind of photographer who gets picked up and lionised by editors and commentators, who make it a point to back the sensational rather than the solid.

If you say Shakespeare or Milton or Tagore is not entertaining enough, I would, quite rightly, dismiss you out of hand. The same principle applies to photographers. After all, ours is an art that is sensitive to nuance. We want to go beyond the mere physicality of our subject and delve in its inner truths. It is only in this way can the inner aura of people and objects be captured and communicated to others.

This requires a vision that goes beyond the superficial in both the people who photograph and the people who see.

Today is truly the age of fast food. We have fast food editors, fast food designers, fast food layout artists, fast food photographers. For them packaging is everything, the very essence of things.

Earlier those who influenced public opinion, whether they were editors or film makers or painters, tried to go about their work with a certain responsibility and a commitment to what they believed in.

Today, none of this is necessary. Everything works on market surveys. It is what sells that counts. Nothing else. And this,I believe, spells the death of true creativity.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.

Alan Harvey is God.

2005-02-11T12:22:00.000+05:30

There are plenty of good documentary photographers in the world. A handful of naturally talented photographers, among them, have grown up to be among the top best. And, there is Alan Harvey.
David Alan Harvey is undoubtedly at the pinnacle of fine documentary photography. A sudden urge sent me digging through my old National Geographics to look for more of his stories. I was trying to read him through his powerful pictures. I spent a lot of time to understand, absorb and see beyond his pictures he has clicked for an assortment of assignments. His pictures represent photography at its sensitive best; his natural style of capturing the beauty of a place is quite unmatched. It is easy to understand why he is the best.
Harvey easily diverges from his contemporaries like Salgado and fellow photographers at Magnum, even McCurry. Salgado’s works would seem more of fine art, very passionate and moving (I am talking with mainly ‘Sahel’ in mind); Steve McCurry’s would seem to represent the perfect ‘on-assignment’ work- more apt, very client conscious, classy and ‘easily’ appreciated pictures I would say. But Harvey pictures borders on the abstract, the intelligent, and carries an air of freedom and unabashed individualism. He let goes of himself and tries to blend into the subject he is shooting.
Harvey’s pictures easily come together in being, most of the time, collages made using very few basic colours. And that is exactly what makes them powerful. His ultramarine blues, faded crimsons and scarlet, pure yellows, burnt umbers weave into beautiful pictures that rightly captures the ‘essence’ of a place and yet, representing a very superior style of a minimalist. Another element is the use of stark shadows. A deliberate harsh contrast seem to bring to the viewer’s attention the presence of a foreground or a background subject but the lack of details quickly restores the importance of the balancing element.
Harvey is selfish. He has no time for anybody. He is impatient. Harvey thinks only of photography. He represents a style where art and documentary photography don’t argue. If there is someone I don’t mind mimicking, that’s him. I am shameless, but I love him.

Resources:

~Reel People: Dave Harvey, on NGC. I don’t know when it is going to be aired again. Reza is being featured next on 12th feb.
~National Geographic: His bio and some questions answered.
~Take Great Pictures: Bio, interview and a must-read tips on documentary photography.

Afternote: People who have listened to Alan Harvey tell me that he is far from being 'selfish' and self centered. He only gets too involved in his subjects, he says. i am sorry if my analysis is far from the truth. i apologise. i love him more.

2005-02-03T09:49:00.000+05:30

mountain stream, Kanoor trek

Kudremukh

2005-01-31T11:45:00.000+05:30

Kudremukh 1, originally uploaded by Dr Vivek M L.

undoubtedly one of the best routes on this side of the WG. Ravishankar and I went on a three day trek to this 1892m peak few years ago. it forms a part of a huge Reserve forest area which boasts of a annual rainfall of 7000mm!

2005-01-30T23:50:00.000+05:30

sunset from the top, DRS. the Anthargange hills are seen at the horizon...

2005-01-30T23:46:00.000+05:30

DRS. this is how it looks once you climb up the hill...

2005-01-30T23:40:00.000+05:30

Murali and Kishore climbing up the DRS hill.

2005-01-27T00:21:00.000+05:30

the rolling mountains of the Western Ghats. Tadiyendamol, Coorg.

2005-01-26T23:02:00.000+05:30

the mighty Chembra among the clouds, Wyanad. this mountain seemed really angry with us when we went to meet him. he let only three among the seven of us to finally trek up the peak. i was one among them. the morning of the second day was like walking in a dream, among caressing clouds, the moon-like-sun making brief appearances, sights of elephants on a distant slope...

2005-01-26T22:57:00.000+05:30

campsite, Tadiyendamol. Kishore, Murali and i trekked up this beautiful mountain in Coorg a few winters back. we are also excited because this was the first time we put to use our newly acquired tent. it stood the winds pretty fine and has joined us for many many treks thereafter...

2005-01-25T18:37:00.000+05:30

one misty morning...

2005-01-25T14:57:00.000+05:30

I thought this was a very interesting excerpt...
EYES ON A FAST WORLD,
THE WORLD PRESS PHOTO CONTEST 2004,
By ELISABETH BIONDI.
(Aperture magazine, winter 2004)

… the most obvious and dramatic development, of course, is the widespread use of digital photography. This year (with some notable exceptions, such as Luc Delahaye, Alexandra Boulat and Stanley Greene), photojournalists transmitted their images directly from Iraq, making this the first “digital war”. The increased speed makes for a fundamental change in the way photojournalists work-for better, and sometimes for worse.
One advantage of digital technology is obvious: images can be seen, edited, and printed almost instantaneously. News media and audiences now receive instant photojournalism. Also, digital cameras make the technical process easier and can produce technically more “perfect” images, as well as offering great latitude in low-light situations. And the photographer has the freedom to see, store, and dispose of images immediately.
The drawbacks are less obvious. The digital process places new demands on photographers, especially in conflict situations. At the end of each day of shooting, often in life threatening conditions, the photojournalist must transmit pictures-with captions-back to the publication or the agency that awaits them. This is a time consuming and often frustrating task that can add up to six hours to the photographer’s workday. There is little time for careful editing, and perhaps no time at all for old fashioned story weaving. The photographer is deprived of the valuable process of reflection. Every night, instead of thinking ahead and planning the next move, the exhausted photojournalist must begin the tedious job of archiving the day’s images. James Nachtwey puts it bluntly: “The digital cleanup interferes with the journalistic process.” Additionally, there is a curious backward-looking mechanism to digital picture-taking. Instead of focusing on the next image, photographers may be tempted to glance down at the image just taken-and thus may easily miss the ensuing “moment.” Photojournalists have words for this: a “chipmunk” photographer instantly edits while shooting-a process called chimping-allowing little room for composition or thought. How conducive is this to producing lasting images?
Finnish photographer Ilkka Uimonen , who received a prize in the Spot News category, is one of the few who successfully straddles digital and nondigital media. He was on assignment in Iraq for eight weeks and, like everyone who worked for newsmagazines, transmitted his digital images home nightly. But he also carried a rangefinder camera and shot black-and-white film, “on the periphery,” as he says. His are not the only memorable pictures from Iraq, but they are particularly powerful. By allowing himself the freedom to work at his own pace, Uimonen made photographs that are introspective, lyrical, and elusively seductive.
It became evident in Amsterdam that certain events were covered by a great number of photographers; consider the thousands of images of the fall of Saddam’s statue. The process of “embedding” journalists was intended to control (at least to a certain extent) images sent back to the media; and indeed, in the first weeks of the war it did considerably limit photographers’ access. Perhaps, too, the shortage of time to develop and plot out a story contributed to the numbers of photojournalists all covering the same situations.
The new speed and technology, and strictly delimited photographable terrain, have made it particularly difficult during this conflict for a photographer to preserve an independent personal vision. A few have managed to maintain a strong visual “handwriting” in both digital and nondigital images. Some, such as Simon Norfolk, have purposefully chosen the slower, nondigital process of large-format cameras; others use black-and-white film, casting a “slow eye” on a fast-paced world.
As the use of digital photography expands, and as a new generation of photographers falls in love with the ease of this new technology, we can expect yet greater floods of images. No doubt the submissions for the World Press photo 2005 will be even more copious than they were this year. Photography is constantly evolving, and with improving technology, photographers will surely test new creative limits. At the same time, there are and always will be others who choose to let their images stand out from the digital masses by allowing time to work slowly for them. We saw some exceptional photographers by these new “mavericks” at the World Press 2004. They will surely be there next year as well, and I hope the one after, and the one after that.

(Elisabeth Biondi has been the Visuals Editor of the New Yorker magazine since 1996. Previously, she held the position of Director of Photography at Germany’s Stern magazine and at Vanity Fair, was Picture Editor at Geo, USA. Biondi headed the jury of this year’s World Press Photo contest).
(My notes: Alexandra Boulat is one of my favourite photographers and I have been eagerly following her stories. Jan 2005 issue of the National Geographic magazine carries her pictures for a story on Berbers of Morocco).

2005-01-24T23:32:00.000+05:30

marvanthe beach, karavali coast (thanks Sudarshan for pointing out the error, i had previously named it 'pondicherry')

2005-01-22T22:10:00.000+05:30

a walk through the sholas, sharavathy valley

2005-01-21T22:28:00.000+05:30

kolar, last days.

2005-01-20T01:09:00.000+05:30

another shot of karim

2005-01-19T01:30:00.000+05:30

outside the museum

2005-01-17T23:38:00.000+05:30

another picture of the filtering sunrays, shot at the same place as the one below.

2005-01-17T23:22:00.000+05:30

Light!
well, kishore suggested that it would be nice if i could disclose digital manipulation, if any, done on the pictures i post. so for a start, the above picture has undergone the following. this was a colour photograph, i first resized and sharpened the image(unsharp mask). then converted it to grayscale, and altered levels. i needed an extra border of white so i stroked the border to 5 pixel of white. oh yes, there was some bit of cropping too.

2005-01-15T18:10:00.000+05:30

enjoying the mist, horsley hills.

2005-01-15T18:07:00.000+05:30

spending time... horsley hills.

2005-01-15T17:35:00.000+05:30

horsley hills. two of my friends are in love! so i thought i shall post some pictures from a trip with the two of them. horsley hill is a little known hill station in andhra pradesh, named after an english general. the place is just as big as a village, pleasant weather and you have absolutely nothing to do except watch the clouds brush your feet.

2005-01-14T16:48:00.000+05:30

pages from my journal...

2005-01-14T01:04:00.000+05:30

phut phutty driver

2005-01-14T01:00:00.000+05:30

cruising on the road

2005-01-14T00:50:00.000+05:30

majestic, bangalore

2005-01-13T01:13:00.000+05:30

an afternoon at the railway station

Allard's advice to novices

2005-01-09T22:26:00.000+05:30

Develop your ability to see. Many people graduate from college or
graduate school thinking they are photographers. They are equipped
with cameras that do everything but park your car. But often these
people can’t really see and understand light. You can’t rely on
technology for seeing a picture.

Know what came before you. Study famous photographers (Paul Strand,
W. Eugene Smith, Robert Frank, Henri Cartier-Bresson are just a few
for example). There are so many. Don’t emulate these people, but
appreciate how they looked at their subjects.

Study paintings too. Painters teach us about organizing space. What
you exclude is as important as what you include. Pay attention to
light and shadows. A painter can manipulate them and his palette is
endless, but a photographer has less control. I usually can’t control
the conditions under which I take pictures.

When I was shooting the blues I could see pictures everywhere. But I
had to focus on one picture. It’s just like hunting quail. When a
hunter sees a covey, he has to pick one bird or he probably won’t hit
anything. It’s the same with pictures. Slow down, and pick one shot
at a time.

2005-01-03T17:45:00.000+05:30

bulla! i know not who i am
bulla! i know not who i am

nor am i the believer in mosque
nor am i in idol-worship
nor am in the pure and the impure

nor am i in the vedas
nor am i in intoxicants
nor am i the carefree deviant

nor am i union nor grief
nor am in the pure/impure
nor am i of the water nor of the land

nor am i fire nor air
bulla! i know not who i am

nor am i arabic nor from lahore
nor am i the indian city of nagaur
nor a hindu or a peshawari turk

nor did i create the difference
of faith
nor did i create adam-eve
nor did i name myself

begining or end i know just the self
do not recognise 'the other one'
there's none wiser than i

who is this bulla shah
bulla! i know not who i am

(words by sufi saint bulla shah, 18th century,
photograph courtesy lavannya)
also, suggested listening to rabbi shergill's rendition of this beautiful song. absolutely addictive.
rabbi/rabbi, phat phish records, 2004.

2005-01-02T13:20:00.000+05:30

mr. hadapad's room. one of the finest artists karnataka has seen. i remember his sketches of horses he drew in my book. he passed away in 2003.

2005-01-02T13:16:00.000+05:30

ken's school of art.

2005-01-02T13:14:00.000+05:30

ken's school of art, bangalore. i had my first lessons in fine art at this little cosy art school in sheshadripuram. the summer holidays of my high school days were spent here. i visited the art school recently and found it is still the very same place i knew.

2004-12-17T11:08:00.000+05:30

inspired by lavannya's pictures (which inturn were inspired by Trent Parke, photographer extraordinaire!) i tried my hand at this.

2004-12-15T00:07:00.000+05:30

i am enjoying f/2.8 with elan, shall i say?! trying to design something with my picture, can't seem to sleep... need to get up at 4 am to pick up mom...
oh.. by the way, 36 chowringee lane is a bengali restaurant on Lanford road. read more about it here.