Two Street Photographers Bound To Hussain

Two Street Photographers Bound To Hussain, a photo by firoze shakir photographerno1 on Flickr.

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I am copying the words of a very dear friend who means a lot to me , he has stood by me in my time of defeat , and helped me get up..without being unduly crushed by fate..

His words on the day we celebrated Marziyas birthday..


In the isles of time as I sit to write my thoughts my wishes first go out to Baby Marziya who has turned 4 years and sure enough I can sense how much she has added to this world by being a human first, one who kisses others hands as a mark of love, respect, affection and admiration, one who clicks pictures not because she sees her grand father doing it but because she wants to present the world with what she sees through those lenses, am glad that I have contributed in my miniscule way to present her with a camera, one with the changing time may become obsolete but never ever old enough, one which she might always use and say someday ”Ahhh this was my first camera!”



We all get busy with time and world changes, yes the web connects and how but I feel that good deeds will always be appreciated the fact that you have touched so many lives directly and indirectly only goes to prove that the message of god connects thru castes, creed, religions…it’s the celebration of human beings, it’s the celebration of life, it’s the celebration of love and hence that is what connects, web is merely a connection factor so as they say if something is destined to happen it shall!



As much as I am saddened by you all not being able to make it to Hyderabad, I eagerly await the day when you can and I am around to take you, the fact that I wanted your friends also to experience Hyderabad as they present the outsiders view of India, certainly India has thousand of stories all entangled in their own way, all mystical in their own right, all fascinating in their own spirit and all mesmerizing in their own ways, Yes India is a blessed country, the land of sadhus and sajes, of babas and malangs, of fakirs and peers…a land signifying unity in diversity…a land denoting secularism…a land showcasing warmth and affection…



Saw the pics of Danish couple, the guy is a towering inferno but has such a clean heart, his girl friend is indeed beautiful and her eyes tell a tale, surely they have struggled to make ends meet but lets hope this project of them gives them hope to celebrate and rejoice, a wise decision indeed to stay back for filming moharram and with Glenn Losack you have your hands full, three foreigners, huge Moharram julooos, maatam, khama et all, I guess they will be a part of the fervor, the tabarruks, the cries, the chants, the meditation, the spiritual thanksgiving and the tribute to Imam Hussain, I guess they surely do know about Karbala with their investigative eye for knowledge and creativity but seeing it LIVE would be a wonderful experience for them!



You need to change your timings of sleep as sometimes for peace of mind a good amount of direct sleep is required, I am happy with the gesture that your landlord has extended to you and it goes a long way to show that in India humans come first, at the same time it would be tough to break a routine, the beggar poet, the dum madar malang has made over a period of years and then head back again to BS where it all began but guess life is like a full circle so why not and specially when there is a requirement, with changing time we all need to evolve but these years outside BS have made you rediscover yourself, Firoze Shakir the beggar poet began to only get better, Firoze Shakir the dam madar malang was created with the sufiyana thoughts and support and Firoze Shakir the Photographer No 1 could not have been what he is thanks to the people of India, the places of India, the vision of India and the movement of India, all captured from genders to transgenders, from the old and downtrodden to the rich and powerful in his lenses, the spirit of India which is untiring be it the ganesh visarshan or the mount mary feast, the dussehra mela or the moharram juloos, they all are a part of your vision which you present to the world which now has become even more smaller!



I will leave you in peace and thoughts with the wish of meeting you someday soon, that day indeed would be a memorable day for me not that because I have met you in person but because I have fulfilled a dream of meeting a person who lives by the people with the people and FOR THE PEOPLE!



God bless
Zain Hussain

My reply

Thank you I am speechless at your tribute to my humility