Tribal Beggars Of Haji Malang

Tribal Beggars Of Haji Malang, a photo by firoze shakir photographerno1 on Flickr.

The most neglected community in any state I have shot are the backward tribal people , and the tribal folks of Maharashtra are the worst lot at pilgrimage site groveling to be human , like insects crawling for fodder ..they do menial jobs carrying heavy loads up and down the Malangad mountains , and these are the children of the soil.. their children beg , do menial jobs , and they are thin scrawny puny but they smile ..it is this smile I shot when I shot the kids , being overdressed with a turban rings but barefeet , made them think I was a beggar too..all be it with a camera..

I hardly go to hillstations .. many years back I went to Khandala Lonavala Mulshi Dam Malsejh and Mahableshwar.. not anymore no time no inclination and I wont shoot landscapes ,sunsets sunrise ..

My genre is pain , shooting beggars , I dont sell pictures I wish I did my bad times would have gone but the only thing that keeps me grounded is bad times they have stuck to my poets soul like leech bleeding every drop of my passion poetry and pathos.

If I covered myself with a shawl and sat next to the people I shoot I would become a beggar too..having begged , eaten leftovers with my Naga Sadu at the Kumbh and Maha Kumbh I rediscovered the beggar angst in the poetry of my soul..

I begged with the Rafaees at Mahim and other places so I know what it means being a beggar and shooting beggars .

Ever since I became a blogger I have never used pen or paper ,my writing is limited to noting measurements I am a self made over rated tailor my father was a high end tailor too...my mothers side was poets .. my fathers side was vinegar merchants ..

The camera gave me a sense of direction and of late I lost it I hardly use the camera but create new pictures every day.. with the click of a mouse .. I create new thought new poetry.. in my souls old battered clothes .. I call myself a beggar poet and it sticks to me ..


My grand children are smarter than me ,, and I am learning a new language of their mind ..thanks to them..they are achievers .. they mastered the art of shooting pictures I am still learning to shoot pictures ..

I am stuck in Mumbai.. chained forever .. I am all over the net but I am still in Mumbai..I am on Tumblr Flickr Twitter Google+ I just added Google+ again after 8 months of sabbatical.. Facebook I have put to sleep, it tries to wake me up but I ignore the alarm let it ring..

I shall now hit the sack again.. I sleep for about 5 hours .. after giving up a high end job that had made me a ornamental fish in a 2 feet aquarium , I now sleep whenever I want to sleep.. I am Free .. Am I Free .. Ha Ha ..