This was shot in Ajmer 2012 and the bulk of my images shot during the Ajmer Urus documented the beggars the hijras and the rafaees and the malangs ,,
Ever since photography was banned in the Dargah premises , I only bought my camera in to shoot the Chatti celebrations of my Host Peerab Fakhru Miya Hujra No 6 . and that is all I shot in the Dargah or the Chatti Celebrations on his terrace .
I would wander the back lanes of Ajmer seeking out beggars and strangely it was the beggars who sought me out ,, and this old man blind in both eyes tended by his son lying on the road seeking redemption...
And you cannot escape beggars in Ajmer as the Keeper of Ajmer is aptly known as Khwajah Gharib Nawaz one who bestows his goodness godliness on the unfortunate .
Beggars with no place to stay , who sleep on the roads in all seasons and it is worst during the heavy rains , the gutters choked up and the streets till gates of Bulund Darwaz fully flooded .. you have to wade in this mucky dirty water ,,
As I have limited time I have to get back to Mumbai and my work I leave the day after Chatti , sometimes I climb up the mountains to reach Taragadh barefeet or sometimes I go to Pushkar to meet my friends Niru Bullet and Raj Tilak .
There are also a lot of beggars where the hijras stay at Moti Katla , and the hijra goddesses feed them clothe them and are over generous every Hijra household has a langar community meals and the Niyaz distributed to all who come ..and the Niyaz is a tribute to Kwajah Garib Nawaz.. Harzat Moinuddin Chishti..
For those who need change loose coins to pay the beggars there is the easy method , you buy shells for Rs 100 and a shell has a denomination you give this to the beggar he later converts it into cash after some money as service charge is collected by the coin changer ,,
And Ajmer Sharif the Holy City never sleeps during the Urus , the smoke of the chillum hits the breeze and enters your nostrils as you move towards Char Yar or Jalali Chowk ,,In the ancient Char Yar Masjid the Dam Madar Malangs have their Asthana with Masoom Ali Bawa the head of the Aqsan Mlangs presiding over his devotees .. followers of Zinda Shah Madar , next to him is Rafi Ali Bawa ... this is the place you will find me most of the time ..
This time things are not OK my end and I have a feeling I wont be able to go to Ajmer Sharif ,,and I take things as they come ,,and I have no regrets I have seen shot Ajmer Sharif since 2005 .
And people always have this strange justification among Indians that if a photographer shoots beggars he is making money selling their pictures and I feel sorry for their ignorant mindset .. shooting beggars in my case is a catharsis , it makes me wordily voluble I can talk on beggars , talk of beggars and end up poeticizing beggars mostly Muslim beggars ..there are people who come to Ajmer become beggars as there is a lot of money , couples beg on the road saying they have been robbed and need money to go back home ,, and again you will find the same couple begging on the way to Taragadh.. on the 4 th day too..
And people give money to beggars , feed them and give money for their medicines give them clothes and Ajmer adds to the compassion and humanizes even hearts made of miserly material.
And I am a beggar poet , I get money too walking barefeet , those who dont know me think I am an ascetic despite the camera round my neck, they kiss my hands rings ask me to pray for them through Khwajah Garib Nawaz and the money I earn as a beggar I give to the less fortunate ..it was never my money ,,,so going to Ajmer is not just a pilgrimage to pray for my friends , it is also a introspection a journey into my self ,,
Miracles happen in Ajmer , every minute every second , a lot of people got what they asked and some got what they had forgotten to ask.. and the one Mantra at Ajmer is foolproof guaranteed .. Yeh Toh Khwajah Ka Karam Hai.. it is his Bounty and Benevolence ,
