Growing Up In The Slums

Growing Up In The Slums, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

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Having their picture take adds to their happiness, so invariably they hang around here , a house on top built on the support of a tree , a narrow space between the tree and another house is a passage that leads you out of the slums.

The two kids on the left I know , they are the sons of a migrant Muslim guy from UP he has a small provision store.He is least bothered about their upkeep, they roam wild.,

Everybody knows me here but I shoot without posing questions, I never ask the kids names,I shoot move on , the beggar kids I give money or sweets.


My camera is an acceptable part of my persona , its always on my person..when I am out.

I did not want to take my camera to the funeral but I carried it anyway , I shot my parents graves , Nawab Kashmiri Saabs grave , Meena Kumaris grave and Jalal Aghas grave , several other graves too, including my dads uncle Maqbool Bhai..founder of the Imamia Sabil at Bhendi Bazar.

I dont think the pictures will be anything to write home about as there is hardly any light on the graves.

The most beautifully managed and well lit graveyard is Armbagh that belongs to the Shia Khojas of Mumbai, where many a stalwart is buried who contributed to the might of our city.
The Roza of Hazrat Abbas is a a beautifully constructed tribute to the erstwhile brother of Imam Hussaiin here at the Shia Khoja cemetery Mazgaon.


The defunct Jew cemetery is a in a very bad state , gassed to death as I call it, and is small set on my Flickr photo stream.

All in all Rehmatabad Shia cemetery Mazgaon where the Iranian Shias and the Hindustani Shias are buried is a serene calm quiet place , totally overcrowded with graves and is not a very big cemetery.The tiled graves of the Baluchis of Mumbai is worth a look..

One of the Baluchi graves is so artistically beautiful that I can go on shooting it forever..

I dont much care for night photography but as I had time to kill I shot the dead in silent repose..