The Shias at Choti Bargah

The Shias at Choti Bargah, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

Shia Mother and Child

Shia Mother and Child, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

The Shias

The Shias, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

The Hindu Tribals Who Converted To Shiasm

The Hindu Tribals Who Converted To Shiasm, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

These are people of a community that were into thievery and sorcery , but converted with others to Shiasm.

Their majlis on 5 Rabilwal is huge one..both father and son have cut their heads .

Hyderabadi Kids and Kamazani

Hyderabadi Kids and Kamazani, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

108,632 items / 706,493 views

This ends my Ashura Bargah series at Flickr..I moved to the Choti Bargah and Sajjad Bhai dropped me in a very congested land from where I shot the Bibi Ka Alam..

Every kid in Hyderabad has a bandage on his head , as most of them take part in the kamazani ritual of head cutting..

No Escape ...

No Escape ..., originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

108,627 items / 706,416 views

muslim beggar woman
the usual land scape
be it lucknow mumbai
hyderabad
from her impoverished
destiny - no escape
standing begging for alms
in a funereal drape
hidden beneath her hijab
her pain her sorrow
her life in bad shape
from the cauldron of
her karmic calamity
a few crumbs scrape
her dreams
like a bunch
of sour grapes
slits for eyes
at a stony wall
of silence
agape

Ya Hussain Ya Hussain

Ya Hussain Ya Hussain, originally uploaded by firoze shakir photographerno1.

108,627 items / 706,416 views

I shoot Muslim kids but before I can shoot them they shoot me too..they dont need glitzy cameras their eyes do the job more cleanly and meticulously than me..

On his head is a band that reads like a not to be missed neon sign of Faith- Ya Hussain.

And as I write this I await the return of my grand daughter Marziya Shakir from her mothers home town Lucknow..

I went and bought her a doll, a Monginis cake just to capture the smile of her innocence.. and I am eagerly awaiting to see her beat her chest at the house Imambada while the woman of the house do Matam..

Shia kids are tutored in their mothers womb the tough journey ahead safe guarding the legacy of Ghame Hussain....
And overnight with the slash of a knife or a blade a Shia child inherits his kingdom of pain..