Appu In The Rains

Appu In The Rains, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

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I shot this in 2007 during the Shia Shabbarat celebrations , and this is the entry path to Rehmatabad Shia cemetery Mazgaon .

This was a post without text I am updating today 1 Aug 2010.


The Shias come to pray for the souls of their ancestors offer fatiah on the graves , there are two ways of seeing this the ones in the graves are the sleeping dead and the beggars begging for salvation of your soul are the living dead.

This picture of Appu haunts me even now and I could have shot this by changing my angle of view but I was far too timid and embarrassed., and as I shoot my pictures as poems it is tough being a photographer in situations such as these.

That is why most of my beggar shots are not face to face at all.

Perhaps I am a bigger beggar than the beggars I shoot a lot of beggars and sanctimonious shit heads who see me shooting beggar pictures think I do it for money or to show my country in a bad light fortunately my credentials as a nationalist Indian are more complete than my own marginalized religiosity taking hiccups in sectarian strife.
You know exactly who shows the country in bad light I dont need to elaborate those who leads us are doing a terrific job..no pun intended.

It took Mr Boyle to turn our slum life into a brand equity and how do you shoot beggars if you are up into the ass of an insect in your micro lens , or shooting mountains and forgetting the shit lumps of humanity on the roads.

Now you know why I dont shoot sunsets cuddly pictures of toddlers and kids , I shoot pain and survive its onslaught through ever frame I shoot.

Through the pictures I shoot of the beggars relive their pain , and I share it free a a blog I am not paid per cc either..and you cant measure a beggars pain in per cc too.


I thought of desaturating and adding creativity skills to this picture but than I leave it as is where is..