What is the mother thinking begging on the streets on Bakra Eid at Bandra most of my beggar stories are born in Bandra ,, what is her son thinking ..is he thinking I dressed in saffron am mocking them I certainly dont look like a person from their community and I normally wear black it was just a last minute decision to wear this obtrusive attire on a Muslim feast day with no allusions or hidden meanings ,, and it was this attire I had kept ready to go shoot the last Shahi Snan I was to leave on 23 Sept but it did not happen I gave myself another chance 24 Sept and than I waited for a miracle too but the person who was going to sponsor my trip forgot all about it ,, I decided to stay back in Mumbai celebrate Eid with my grandkids and shoot the Eid Namaz ,, Eid Al Adha at Bandra Station Road ,,
I dont want to shoot Nasik 12 years hence I dont know with malfunctioning kidneys gall bladder and unhealthy pancreas whether I will be alive to shoot the Kumbh,,, so I wore the saffron as my winding sheet of my failed pictorial desires ,,my Naga Guru called me but his call did not help at all.
So back to the beggar mother and her grown up son begging helplessly on Bakra Eid ,,and I have shot many of them .. the pathos of their undying failed dreams ,, and they come from distant suburbs to Bandra West ,,why Bandra West beats me ,
I have shot the Azad Maidan Eid Namaz .. I shot it very long time back but it is Bandra Station Eid Namaz that adds beauty to this spiritual calisthenics of Faith ,,I shot a lot of beggars during Eid Ul Fitr as compared to Eid Al Adha ,, Ramzan is a Month of Piety Charity and much more ,,,
I have shot over 5000 images of Muslim beggars as they touched the inner soul of my camera ,,shot and showcased their struggle survival and their perennial hardtimes ..the ones I shoot are hardly members or adherents of a beggar mafia ,, these are helpless creatures fending for themselves ,, trying to make ends meet with the most shameful humiliating job profession called beggary that keeps alive the temples of diverse faith ,, and the spiritual market that needs beggars as man needs water and air ,,
This world’s existence is one night long. There’s a great lively gathering that night, but some people sleep through it. ~Rumi
