The Hyderabadi Blade Matam

The Hyderabadi Blade Matam, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

107,930 items / 703,248 views

The largest consumption of razor blades in a single day that could be a Guinness World record is perhaps Ashura day in Hyderabad , at the Bargah and on the streets by mourners following the Bibi Ka Alam.,.the streets are littered with them, and as they go on losing the sharp edge , more blades are given to the mourners by the Anjumans and private donors..

Normally the blade is broken in half and slipped between the two fingers beating the chest..to the chant of Ya Hussain Katle Shor..or Ya Sakina Ya Abbas ..

Others tie the blades on short wires and their effectiveness on human flesh is as damaging as the more expensive flagellating blades.

After this gets over at the Bargah the kama matam or cutting of the heads start..shooting all this getting a right place I kept moving into puddles of blood..I am barefeet like the rest of them..

I shot this event in Ashura 2003 but not for so long, Hyderabad has a strong hold on me , and I cant explain this in simple English..

I was here from 8 am till 3 pm..shooting non stop..