Wednesday, July 21, 2010

The Day In The Life of the Sandwich Seller of Mumbai

135,302 items / 1,027,776 views

The quintessential poor man rich mans staple snack on the high street of Mumbai is the evergreen sandwich.

The little guy in the picture is not employed by him , but assists him he comes here in the evenings and he has in this short space of time learnt every nuance that goes in the making of the sandwich.

I admire him he is called Chotu, he is a good student and here he is a good assistant too.

Though I am certain he will have his own stall soon , I plead with him not to give up his education , essential and important in times such as these.

These are several frames all at Flickr I shot in the art of making the sandwich, this is my genre documenting the soul of the intrepid man on the street.

Photography makes it possible via the internet to share his stories I dont run after film stars but yes these are my stars I shoot the in natural light of their diligently dominating hardworking nature and entrepreneurship.

They struggle the vagaries of the weather they pay regular hafta to the local authorities and the cops goes without saying, they are threatened bullied by the local goons who demand their pound of flesh too.

But they work and carry on without complaining.


And the elder guy pays for the younger guys education too simply because he never got a chance to study and once upon a time he assisted another sandwich maker on the streets ..

He is following the tradition this is the resilience the assertiveness of a positive spirit of the Mumbaikar on the streets.

Who really cares whether he is from North India , that he has absorbed Mumbai and its ethos in his soul enough for the time being.

And without being sarcastic without being cheek n jowl his favorite party is the party of the masses on the road Shiv Sena .

He is amply protected by them and speaks fluent Marathi too.

So this is one last post I am squeezing before I go back to work.

Yes blogging is writing the drama of the poetry of life in prose..

The rest of the story you can catch on Flickr in pictures.

The Silhouette of the Hijab

135,301 items / 1,027,753 views

according to wikipedia

A hijab or ḥijāb (Arabic: حجاب, (he-zjab)pronounced [ħiˈʒæːb]/[ħiˈɡæːb]) is both the head covering traditionally worn by Muslim women and modest Muslim styles of dress in general.

The Arabic word literally means curtain or cover (noun). Most Islamic legal systems define this type of modest dressing as covering everything except the face and hands in public.[1][2] According to Islamic scholarship, hijab is given the wider meaning of modesty, privacy, and morality;[3] the word for a headscarf or veil used in the Qur'an is khimār (خمار) and not hijab. Still another definition is metaphysical, where al-hijab refers to "the veil which separates man or the world from God."[2]

Muslims differ as to whether the hijab should be required on women in public, as it is in countries like Iran and Saudi Arabia, or whether it should be banned in schools, as it is in France and Turkey.


According to the Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World, the meaning of hijab has evolved over time:

The term hijab or veil is not used in the Qur'an to refer to an article of clothing for women or men, rather it refers to a spatial curtain that divides or provides privacy. The Qur'an instructs the male believers (Muslims) to talk to wives of Prophet Muhammad behind a hijab. This hijab was the responsibility of the men and not the wives of Prophet Muhammad. However, in later Muslim societies this instruction, specific to the wives of Prophet Muhammad, was generalized, leading to the segregation of the Muslim men and women. The modesty in Qur'an concerns both men's and women's gaze, gait, garments, and genitalia. The clothing for women involves khumūr over the necklines and jilbab (cloaks) in public so that they may be identified and not harmed. Guidelines for covering of the entire body except for the hands, the feet and the face, are found in texts of fiqh and hadith that are developed later.[4]

In Indonesia, notably the nation with the largest Muslim population, and some cultures or languages influenced by it namely Malaysia, Brunei and the Philippines, the term jilbab is used instead with few exceptions to refer to the hijab, as opposed to its "correct" modern Arabic definition. In some cases, colloquial use of the term Jilbab may refer to any pre-Islamic female traditional head-dress.

Qur'an

The Qur'an instructs both Muslim men and women to dress in a modest way.

The clearest verse on the requirement of the hijab is surah 24:30-31, asking women to draw their khimar over their bosoms.[5][6]

And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their khimar over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to [...] (Qur'an 24:31)

In the following verse, Muslim women are asked to draw their jilbab over them (when they go out), as a measure to distinguish themselves from others, so that they are not harassed. Sura 33:59 reads:[6]

Those who harass believing men and believing women undeservedly, bear (on themselves) a calumny and a grievous sin. O Prophet! Enjoin your wives, your daughters, and the wives of true believers that they should cast their outer garments over their persons (when abroad) That is most convenient, that they may be distinguished and not be harassed. [...] (Qur'an 33:58–59)

Other Muslims take a relativist approach to ħijāb. They believe that the commandment to maintain modesty must be interpreted with regard to the surrounding society. What is considered modest or daring in one society may not be considered so in another. It is important, they say, for believers to wear clothing that communicates modesty and reserve in the situations in which they find themselves.[7]

Along with scriptural arguments, Leila Ahmed argues that head covering should not be compulsory in Islam because the veil predates the revelation of the Qur'an. Head-covering was introduced into Arabia long before Muhammad, primarily through Arab contacts with Syria and Iran, where the hijab was a sign of social status. After all, only a woman who need not work in the fields could afford to remain secluded and veiled.[8][9]

Leila Ahmed argues for a more liberal approach to hijab. Among her arguments is that while some Qur'anic verses enjoin women in general to Qur'an 33:58–59. “draw their Jilbabs (overgarment or cloak) around them to be recognized as believers and so that no harm will come to them.” and Qur'an 24:31. “guard their private parts... and drape down khimar over their breasts [when in the presence of unrelated men]”, they urge modesty.

However according to the vast majority of Muslims Sunni and Shia, al-Mawrid al-Qawrid Arabic dictionary, Hans-Wehr Dictionary of Arabic into English, and the exhaustive ancient Arabic dictionary "Lisan al-arab", (literally the tongue of the Arabs) the word 'Khimar' means and was used to refer to a piece of cloth that covers the head, or headscarf today called 'hijab'.

Other verses do mention separation of men and women but they refer specifically to the wives of the prophet:

Abide still in your homes and make not a dazzling display like that of the former times of ignorance:(Qur'an 33:32–33)

And when ye ask of them [the wives of the Prophet] anything, ask it of them from behind a curtain.(Qur'an 33:53)

According to Leila Ahmed, nowhere in the whole of the Qur'an is the term hijab applied to any woman other than the wives of Muhammad..[8][10]

According to at least two authors, (Reza Aslam and Leila Ahmed) the stipulations of the hijab were originally meant only for Muhammad's wives, and were intended to maintain their inviolability. This was because Muhammad conducted all religious and civic affairs in the mosque adjacent to his home:

People were constantly coming in and out of this compound at all hours of the day. When delegations from other tribes come to speak with Prophet Muhammad, they would set up their tents for days at a time inside the open courtyard, just a few feet away from the apartments in which Prophet Muhammad's wives slept. And new emigrants who arrived in Yatrib would often stay within the mosque's walls until they could find suitable homes.[8]

According to Ahmed:

By instituting seclusion Prophet Muhammad was creating a distance between his wives and this thronging community on their doorstep.[11]

They argue that the term darabat al-hijab ("taking the veil"), was used synonymously and interchangeably with "becoming Prophet Muhammad's wife", and that during Muhammad's life, no other Muslim woman wore the hijab. Aslam suggests that Muslim women started to wear the hijab to emulate Muhammad's wives, who are revered as "Mothers of the Believers" in Islam,[8] and states "there was no tradition of veiling until around 627 C.E." in the Muslim community.[8][11]


The four major Sunni schools of thought (Hanafi, Shafi'i, Maliki and Hanbali) hold that entire body of the woman, except her face and hands- though many[who?] say face, hands, and feet-, is part of her awrah, that is the parts of her body that must be covered during prayer and in public settings.[13][14]

Some Muslims[who?] recommend that women wear clothing that is not form fitting to the body: either modest forms of western clothing (long shirts and skirts), or the more traditional jilbāb, a high-necked, loose robe that covers the arms and legs. A khimār or shaylah, a scarf or cowl that covers all but the face, is also worn in many different styles. Some Salafi scholars encourage covering the face, while some follow the opinion that it is only not obligatory to cover the face and the hands but mustahab (Highly recommended). Other scholars oppose face covering, particularly in the west where the woman may draw more attention as a result. These garments are very different in cut than most of the traditional forms of ħijāb, and they are worn worldwide by Muslims.

Detailed scholarly attention has been focused on prescribing female dress. Most scholars agree that the basic requirements are that when in the presence of someone of the opposite sex (other than a close family member - see mahram), a woman should cover her body, and walk and dress in a way which does not draw sexual attention to her. Some scholars go so far as to specify exactly which areas of the body must be covered. In some cases, this is everything save the eyes but most require everything save the face and hands to be covered. In nearly all Muslim cultures, young girls are not required to wear a ħijāb. There is not a single agreed age when a woman should begin wearing a ħijāb; however, in many Muslim countries, puberty is the dividing line.

In private, and in the presence of mahrams, the rules on dress are relaxed. However, in the presence of husband, most scholars stress the importance of mutual freedom and pleasure of the husband and wife.[15]


The burqa (also spelled burka) is the garment that covers women most completely: either only the eyes are visible, or nothing at all. Originating in what is now Pakistan, it is more commonly associated with the Afghan chadri. Typically, a burqa is composed of many yards of light material pleated around a cap that fits over the top of the head, or a scarf over the face (save the eyes). This type of veil is cultural as well as religious.

It has become tradition that Muslims in general, and Salafis in particular, believe the Qur'ān demands women wear the garments known today as jilbāb and khumūr (the khumūr must be worn underneath the jilbāb). However, Qur'ān translators and commentators translate the Arabic into English words with a general meaning, such as veils, head-coverings and shawls.[16] Ghamidi argues that verses [Qur'an 24:30] teach etiquette for male and female interactions, where khumūr is mentioned in reference to the clothing of Arab women in the 7th century, but there is no command to actually wear them in any specific way. Hence he considers head-covering a preferable practice but not a directive of the sharia (law).[17]
[edit] Men's dress

Although certain general standards are widely accepted, there has been little interest in narrowly prescribing what constitutes modest dress for Muslim men. Most mainstream scholars say that men should cover themselves from the navel to the knees; a minority say that the hadith that are held to require this are weak and possibly inauthentic. They argue that there are hadith indicating that the Islamic prophet Muħammad wore clothing that uncovered his thigh when riding camels, and hold that if Muħammad believed that this was permissible, then it is surely permissible for other Muslim males.[citation needed]

As a practical matter, however, the opinion that Muslim men must cover themselves between the navel and the knees is predominant, and most Muslims believe that a man who fails to observe this requirement during salah must perform the prayer again,[citation needed] properly covered, in order for it to be valid. Three of the four Sunni Madh'hab, or schools of law, require that the knees be covered; the Maliki school recommends but does not require knee covering.

According to some hadith, Muslim men are asked not to wear gold jewellery, silk clothing, or other adornments that are considered feminine. Some scholars say that these prohibitions should be generalized to prohibit the lavish display of wealth on one's person.[18]

In more secular Muslim nations, such as Turkey or Tunisia, many women are choosing, or being coerced, to wear the Hijab, Burqa, Niqab, etc. because of the widespread growth of the Islamic revival in those areas.[citation needed] Similarly, increasing numbers of men are abandoning the Western dress of jeans and t-shirts, that dominated places like Egypt 20 to 30 years ago, in favour of more traditional Islamic clothing such as the Galabiyya.

In Iran many women, especially younger ones, have taken to wearing transparent, colorful and very loosly worn Hijabs instead of Chadors or mantoos to protest but keep within the law of the state.

The colors of this clothing varies. It is mostly black, but in many African countries women wear clothes of many different colours depending on their tribe, area, or family. In Turkey, where the hijab is banned in private and state universities and schools, 11% of women wear it, though 60% wear traditional non-Islamic headscarves, figures of which are often confused with hijab.[19] [20][21]

In many of the western nations, there has been a general rise of hijab-wearing women. They are especially common in Muslim Student Associations at college campuses.

Some Muslims have criticized strict dress codes that they believe go beyond the demands of hijab, using Qur'an 66:1 to apply to dress codes as well; the verse suggests that it is wrong to refrain from what is permitted by God.[cit


John Esposito, professor of Islamic Studies at Georgetown University, writes that the customs of veiling and seclusion of women in early Islam were assimilated from the conquered Persian and Byzantine societies and then later on they were viewed as appropriate expressions of Quranic norms and values. The Qur'an does not stipulate veiling or seclusion; on the contrary, it tends to emphasize the participation of religious responsibility of both men and women in society.[22] He claims that "in the midst of rapid social and economic change when traditional security and support systems are increasingly eroded and replaced by the state, (...) hijab maintains that the state has failed to provide equal rights for men and women because the debate has been conducted within the Islamic framework, which provides women with equivalent rather than equal rights within the family."[23]

Bloom and Blair also write that the Qur'an doesn't require women to wear veils; rather, it was a social habit picked up with the expansion of Islam. In fact, since it was impractical for working women to wear veils, "A veiled woman silently announced that her husband was rich enough to keep her idle."[24]
[edit] Modern practice

Some governments encourage and even oblige women to wear the hijab, whilst others have banned it in at least some public settings.

Some Muslims believe hijab covering for women should be compulsory as part of sharia, i.e. Muslim law. Wearing of the hijab was enforced by the Taliban regime in Afghanistan, and is enforced in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and in the Islamic Republic of Iran. The Islamic Emirate required women to cover not only their head but their face as well, because "the face of a woman is a source of corruption" for men not related to them.[25] While some women wholeheartedly embrace the rules, others protest by observing the rules in slipshod or inconsistent fashion, or flouting them whenever possible. Sudan's criminal code allows the flogging or fining of anyone who “violates public morality or wears indecent clothing”, albeit without defining "indecent clothing",

Turkey, Tunisia, and Tajikistan are Muslim-majority countries where the law prohibits the wearing of hijab in government buildings, schools, and universities. In Tunisia, women were banned from wearing hijab in state offices in 1981 and in the 1980s and 1990s more restrictions were put in place.[26] The Turkish government recently attempted to lift a ban on Muslim headscarves at universities, but were overturned by the country's Constitutional Court.[27]

On March 15, 2004, France passed a law banning "symbols or clothes through which students conspicuously display their religious affiliation" in public primary schools, middle schools, and secondary schools. In the Belgian city of Maaseik, Niqāb has been banned.[28] (2006)

On July 13, 2010, France's lower house of parliament overwhelmingly approved a bill that would ban wearing the Islamic full veil in public. There were 335 votes for the bill and only one against in the 557-seat National Assembly.
[edit] Non-governmental

Non-governmental enforcement of hijab is found in many parts of the Muslim world.

Successful informal coercion of women by sectors of society to wear hijab has been reported in Gaza where Mujama' al-Islami, the predecessor of HAMAS, reportedly used "a mixture of consent and coercion" to "`restore` hijab" on urban educated women in Gaza in the late 1970s and 1980s.[29]

Similar behavior was displayed by Hamas itself during the first intifada in Palestine. Though a relatively small movement at this time, Hamas exploited the political vacuum left by perceived failures in strategy by the Palestinian factions to call for a 'return' to Islam as a path to success, a campaign that focused on the role of women.[30] Hamas campaigned for the wearing of the hijab alongside other measures, including insisting women stay at home, segregation from men and the promoting of polygamy. In the course of this campaign women who chose not to wear the hijab were verbally and physically harassed, with the result that the hijab was being worn 'just to avoid problems on the streets'.[31]

In France, according to journalist Jane Kramer, veiling among school girls became increasingly common following the 9/11 Attack of 2001, due to coercion by "fathers and uncles and brothers and even their male classmates" of the school girls. "Girls who did not conform were excoriated, or chased, or beaten by fanatical young men meting out Islamic justice."[32] According to the American magazine The Weekly Standard, a survey conducted in France in May 2003 reportedly "found that 77% of girls wearing the hijab said they did so because of physical threats from Islamist groups."[33]

In India a 2001 "acid attack on four young Muslim women in Srinagar ... by an unknown militant outfit, [was followed by] swift compliance by women of all ages on the issue of wearing the chadar (head-dress) in public."[34][35][36]

In Basra Iraq, "more than 100 women who didn't adhere to strict Islamic dress code" were killed between the summer of 2007 and spring of 2008 by Islamist militias (primarily the Mahdi Army) who controlled the police there, according to the CBS news program 60 Minutes.[37]

Islamists in other countries have been accused of attacking or threatening to attack the faces of women in an effort to intimidate them from wearing of makeup or allegedly immodest dress.[38][39][40]
[edit] Hijab by country


The veil has become the subject of lively contemporary debate, in Muslim countries as well as within Western countries with Muslim populations. For example, in 2006 British government minister Jack Straw suggested that communication with some of the Muslim members of his constituency would be made significantly easier if they ceased covering their faces.[41] In broader terms, the sweep of the debate is captured by Bodman and Tohidi, stating that 'the meaning of the hijab ranges from a form of empowerment for the woman choosing to wear it to a means of seclusion and containment imposed by others'.[42] The subject has also become highly politicized. There is a diverse range of views on the wearing of the hijab in general. Sadiki interviews a woman who views it as 'submission to God's commandments'.[43] Rubenberg illustrates how even secular women in Muslim countries can be made to wear the veil due to a social or political context.[44] Some criticise the hijab in its own right as a regressive device, such as Polly Toynbee stating that it 'turns women into things'.[45] Faisal al Yafai meanwhile argues that the veil should be debated, but that more pressing issues like political and legal rights of women should be a greater priority.[46]

Writers such as Leila Ahmed and Karen Armstrong have highlighted how the veil became a symbol of resistance to colonialism, particularly in Egypt in the latter part of the 19th Century, and again today in the post-colonial period. In The Battle for God, Armstrong writes:

“The veiled woman has, over the years, become a symbol of Islamic self-assertion and a rejection of Western cultural hegemony.”[47]

While in Women and Gender, Ahmed states:

“...it was the discourses of the West, and specifically the discourse of colonial domination, that in the first place determined the meaning of the veil in geopolitical discourses and thereby set the terms for its emergence as a symbol of resistance.”[48]

The issue of the veil has thus been “hijacked” to a degree by cultural essentialists on both sides of the divide.[citation needed] Arguments against veiling have been co-opted, along with wider “feminist” discourse, to create a colonial “feminism” that uses questions of Muslim women’s dress amongst others to justify “patriarchal colonialism in the service of particular political ends.”[citation needed] Thus, efforts to improve the situation of women in Muslim (and other non-Western) societies are judged purely on what they wear.[citation needed] Meanwhile, for Islamists, rejection of “Western” modes of dress is not enough: resistance and independence can only be demonstrated by the “wholesale affirmation of indigenous culture”[49]—a prime example being the wearing of the veil.

Tracing the Victorian law of coverture, Legal Scholar L. Ali Khan provides a critique of the British male elite that wishes to impose its own "comfort views" to unveil Muslim women from Asia, Africa, and Middle East.[50]

In her discussion of findings from interviews of university-educated Moroccan Muslim women who choose to wear the Hijab, Hessini argues that wearing the Hijab is used as a method of separation of women from men when women work and therefore step into what is perceived to be the men’s public space, so in this case, when women have the right and are able to work, a method has been found to maintain the traditional societal arrangements.[51]

Academic Rema Hammai quotes a Palestinian woman reflective of an "activist" resistance to "hijabization" in Gaza saying that "in my community it's natural to wear" hijab. "The problem is when little boys, including my son, feel they have the right to tell me to wear it."[52] Similarly Iranian-American novelist Azar Nafisi, author of Reading Lolita in Tehran, Marjane Satrapi, author of the graphic novel Persepolis, and Parvin Darabi, who wrote Rage Against the Veil are some of the famous opponents of compulsory hijab, which was protested when first imposed.[53]

Cheryl Benard, writing an opinion piece in Rand Corporation, criticized those who used fear to enforce the hijab and stated that "in Pakistan, Kashmir, and Afghanistan, hundreds of women have been blinded or maimed when acid was thrown on their unveiled faces by male fanatics who considered them improperly dressed."[54]

Lubna al-Hussein, a journalist in Khartoum, was arrested by the Public Order Police for wearing trousers. She is protesting the punishment for breaking hijab: forty lashes and an indeterminate fine.

Be Prepared Be Fair Beware

135,300 items / 1,027,407 views

Facebook ‘fair skin’ application for India sparks row
New Delhi, Jul 17, DH News Service:

Popular social networking site Facebook is facing a major controversy, including allegations of promoting racism, for introducing an application for Indian users that draws on the country’s infatuation for fair skin.

The “Vaseline Men BE PREPARED” application, which promotes the company’s “whitening body lotion” for men, shows users how their skin will get fairer if they use the lotion, by digitally lightening their profile pictures and removing dark spots. The lotion has actor Shahid Kapoor as its brand ambassador.

The campaign has evoked a big outcry on the network, with people posting angry messages on the Facebook page of the campaign.

www.deccanherald.com/content/81983/facebook-fair-skin-app...

As Indians
we are the
biggest nation
of racists
vis a vis
skin care
why blame facebook
for promoting
racism
a poetic thought
i share
for the eligible
bachelor
since time
immemorial
we choose
a wheatish skin
bride as
the ideal pair
fair and lovely
as mans beauty care
to a facebook
application
let us not be unfair
its not attitude
it is not jingoism
but it is being
more slavishly
white we swear
dark skinned
children
we dont
want our sons
wife to bear
but supposing
our sons skin is dark
than the new facebook
application
will take care
send the girls
family
the lightened
profile photo
more dowry
in the offing
the girl
her wealth
in our snare
the Vaseline men
led by Shahid Kapoor
milenge milenge
prince charming
beyond compare
building
dream castles
in the air
at the expense
of our colonial
shortcomings
we make
others
multi millionaire
becoming fairer
turning blonde
our hair

Shhh ! We Are Indians

135,299 items / 1,027,222 views

Please read this poem as a satire and our depressing civic values and habits..

we are Indians
we always do
the opposite
on a spiked fence
we sit
we dig our nose
we scratch our balls
most of the time
on the roads
we pee and shit
showing our posterior
to the world
bit by bit
do not throw garbage
says
the writing on the wall
in reply we spit
we will throw our garbage
in the neighbors yard
like he always did
now we are the
most educated
most cultivated
most cultured
but sometimes
we are stupid
our politics
of divide and rule
a system that our
consciousness befits
we are hindus
muslims christians dalits
but hardly hardly
we are Indians
we are too ashamed
to admit
we get angry
we fight amongst
each other
we have lost
our humorous wit
but in spite of all our
collective flaws
we love our mother India
here we are tightly knit
satyamave jayate
our nations
holy writ
iron in our soul
determination
fighting grit

My Tryst With The Cross

135,298 items / 1,027,204 views

During the break after the 93 Hindu Muslim riots in Mumbai the only time I was hit hard but survived thanks to Nitin Manmohan and his brother Hemant Panchmiya, we had a our first own pagdi house at Danpada Khar in the fishing village of Khar Danda when the riots took place.


Nitin bhai as I call him and I worked at his store Prachins helped me get temporary accommodations as the Danda house my family did not want to go back because of the dark violent memories.

So we stayed for a short while at Chand Society Juhu but the Muslim tag would frighten people so we moved from here to Juhu Scheme and stayed at a bunglow next to Mr Danny Daenzogpas house , from there again after a few months we shifted to Adarsh Nagar in a building close to the Lotus Gas station and mind you my kids still studied at Bandra.

From Adarsh Nagar we came to Pali Naka and from Pali Naka to Veronica street at Ranwar as tenants of Agnes Pereira , my room later was taken by Preity Zinta cine star and according to Agnes has been lucky for those who inhabited it as tenants.

I can vouchsafe words to Preity Zinta I dont now about my luck it eludes me till date.

From Pali Najka a short hiatus , our Khar Danda house got sold for peanuts we came to De Monte Street Bandra .

We stayed here for quite a few years so wherever I lived in Bandra Jesus Christ was always close at hand , this crucifix was in front of a house Maryville on Hill Road and the side lane leads to Waroda Road.


At Pali Naka too there was cross shadowing us and our nomadic after riots life style.

At Kamla Bai Sadan De Monte street house there was the tiny Grotto at the Bandra Bazar and the cross.

At my present house there is not one but several crosses that I pass as I go for work via De Monte street and Chinchpokli Road.

I thought this introduction was necessary to my genre called Jesus Poetry..




Jesus follows me
in the shadows
of the night
cloaked in a hood
silently quiet
when there
is darkness
he sheds light
urges me
not to give
up the fight
or be overawed
by fright
mind you
i am a muslim
he knows it alright
but he was
once human
so he knows
our plight
its not divinity
but man who
divided
this world
into black and white
into different
religiosity
we kill we maim
we destroy
in his name
with
ostentatious
pretentious
sanctimonious
might
its not man
but the maker
we kill on sight
my poetic angst
my poetic flight

The Silhouette Of A Hijab

135,297 items / 1,027,201 views

It is not easy shooting what others
dont shoot a camera is as lyrical
as a musical flute lilting notes
reflective remorse eloquently
mute from my house
to work as i commute
what i see what others
did not see as photo blogs
i compute stealthily
rare moments i loot
frozen time
the genre of my
pedestrian verse
poetizing my angst
my pictorial pursuit

the silhouette of the hijab
glorifying the soul
of muslim womanhood
the only womans garment
totally misunderstood

In Gratitude In Humility

135,296 items / 1,027,199 views

braving
the ferocity
velocity of
the mumbai rains
she sits
a plastic cover
barely fits
her winding sheet
her life a dog pit
begging away
for a few coins
on her soul
they hit

in gratitude
in humility
that's it
as yet
her time
has not
come
she cannot
call it quits
pan masala
in her mouth
on her fucked fate
she spits

i photoshopped
her pain
the poetry of her life
i could not edit
unless too
emotionalize
her pain
through my pain
i quickly cut my wrist

Pain - Opinionated Pain

135,295 items / 1,027,173 views

from one world
to another world
it follows me to
and fro a pain
a pain that
wont go
a pain
that gave birth
in my mothers
womb
a pain
the only pain
that grows
through
my pictures
in humility
i show
poetizing
my angst
opinionated
pain
sometimes fast
sometimes slow
pain the only
tool in my word smithy
between words
and words in a row
pain the only shadow
my bete noire
i could never
overthrow
my words
my pictures
yeast like
words that dont
make dough
i cannot sell
what others sell
fruits of a
laden bough
although
pain has
its rewards
when seeing
one of my pictures
it heals
someone
i dont know
pain from
me to you
you to me as
it poetically flows
a barefeet blogger
dancing in the rains
a camera his
world froze


to nauman umair
designldg
memorable
flickr
moments
i owe

"Don ko pakadna mushkil hi nahin, naamumkin hai."

Me Amitabh Bachchan Bolto Ahe

My Pictures Are Poems You Read As You View

35,292 items / 1,026,661 views

my poems are pictures
you view as you read
born in the captivity
of my mind
your soul has freed
emotionalizing
the angst of disparity
by actions and by deeds
light and shade
on my soul as
they speed
in a workshop
of hope
where words
are my creed
carried
from
one shore
to the other
by RSS feed
a tear drop
of a fragmented bead
sprouting a poem
a pictorial seed
hussain is humanity
what this world needs
as bombs go off
the unborn child bleeds
structured scriptures
misinterpreted
to mislead
another
mosque comes
tumbling down
courtesy yazeed
hate for humanity
100 %guaranteed

I Shot Hope Perched On A Wall

135,291 items / 1,026,618 views

all around
it was despair
but it grew tall
i shot
hope perched
on a wall
it would grow into a
giant at the moment
it is small diminutive
undaunted strong
all in all
seeing me
walking away
it did call
take my picture
before the
worst befalls
paying tribute to
its destiny
at its feet
little ants
crawled

A Child - Shot By Marziya Shakir Nikon D80

135,287 items / 1,026,515 views

This little child and her family consisting of aunts and an uncle including her mother and grandfather visited our house for lunch.


Her grandmother Hashmi from Lucknow was my wife's childhood friend had died a few months back leaving behind several daughters and two sons.

Hashmi was my wife's Lucknow lifeline in Mumbai., and her death hit my wife badly.


So when this family came home Marziya took the shot without being shy and the way she looked back made me feel that her dead grand mother might have whispered in her ears to give Marziya a good shot.

One grand daughter shooting another grand daughter now I let Marziya hold the camera without worrying it falls of her hand though she slings it around her neck..

She took the shot and after taking it checked it on the camera monitor.

Marziya is 2 and a half years old.

The Silhouette of Terror

135,286 items / 1,026,496 views

a sneak preview
of motherhood
in the silhouette
of the hijab
the same hijab
that terrorists
wore at zahedan iran
to destroy
the soul
of motherhood
in Islam
eunuch silence
to cause more harm
a slithering sorrow
searching for balm
muslims love
killing muslims
unarmed
not just muslims
but the word of Allah
desecrated bombed
with each blow
his kingdom stormed


ma ek bar phir
tujh ko salaam

Optical Illusions Of the Mind

135,285 items / 1,026,463 views

visible
to the soul
visibly blind
what you seek
someone else
will find
happiness
sorrow
two pillars
of mankind
on the soul
of humanity
aligned
pain
a silhouette
follows you
from behind a cup
that never empties
with your fate
entwined
flip vertical
what was once
upside down
downside up
as street photography
defined

I am on Flickr Instagram You Tube