Interaction...

is extremely important.

A portrait of hope..

.. is what one looks out for always when dealing with social issues.

I am blessed to keep finding them in my journeys and assignments.

Rise up .. and Speak

One of the things we often fail to do is to rise up and make ourselves heard.
I wish all did that more often.

Project Kanya

Project Kanya is an initiative by the present Government of Bihar to set up high schools up-to class twelve exclusively for girls.

Amongst the other benefits, includes a bicycle for every girl child who goes to school regularly. The move is undertaken so that the children from all neighboring villages can attend the schools.

I will be showcasing this project for a while from now onwards. This is my second major project in the quest of promotion of Child Education in Rural Bihar.

Smile yaar...

Life is beautiful.

Kids have fun....

....at beaches..
As adults.. we don't.

I wonder why.

Staring Into Myself

How often does one get this opportunity to stare into oneself?

I get to do that every time I go to a beach.
As that's where I find the perfect replica of me.

The Infinite expanse that it possesses.
The acceptance of the smallness of a human.
The Opportunities that lie beyond the horizon.
The moving ship .. the vehicle of life.
The obstacles that are the cloud.
The winds that blow them away.

I can feel the winds of change.
The passage of time.
The good and the bad.

Standing alone.
There.
I stare into myself.

Of friends and beaches

I could literally spend hours on the beach with my friends.

Sometimes I can do it alone too.

I was away to NIT Surathkal this weekend for one of my photography workshops, and guess what, this college has its own private beach! How cool is that! Wonderful I must say!

Do not lose focus

Got a tip for my startup from another startup founder:
Do not try to be good at a lot of things. Be the master of one small thing first. In other words, do not lose your focus.

There may be multiple lights in the starting, and would attract you. It's how you make the choice for the one that you are going to excel in and move forward, that is most important.

Let go of your ego...

Have you ever wondered what would have happened if the Sun were to take light from a small candle?
Have you ever felt bad when a junior, or a person younger to you tried giving you advise and you felt bad? Or I should say, the Ego was hurt.
Numerous times. I am sure.

Learn to Forgive. Learn to Forget.

Sometimes, it is something way smaller than who we are or at a lower position than where we are, who are the guiding light for us.

The thirst for knowledge begins...

....after a long time.

... and I am happy!

:)

Be the light...

...in your own life.
...in someone else's life.

Make a difference.

Let the light emanate

...from the core of your hearts,
and help to spread to delete all the darkness around.

Towards Light ... Always.

Hope all had a safe and beautiful Diwali.

Shubh Diwali

असतो मा सद्गमय
तमसो मा ज्योतिर्गमय
मृत्योर् मा अमृतं गमय
ॐ शांति शांति शांति

From the unreal, lead us to the Real; From darkness, lead us unto Light;
From death, lead us to Immortality.
Om peace, peace, peace.

Happy Diwali

... and the cloud parted.

..and there was light.

Time to cheer up, he said.
The worse is behind.

The desire to stand tall..

...in times when you are fallen, is directly proportional to the amount of belief that you have in yourself.

Clarity

What do you do when you do not have a clarity on the way things are going to be in the near future?

And every path seems to lead to a great destination, but the very path is unclear.

Being Content..

..with what you have is the key to finding happiness.

The kid within us..

...should be let loose at times and be allowed to do the things that please us from within.

Pujo Patterns

I am always mesmerized by the patterns formed by paints, flowers, and other colored flour in festivals across India.

I love it.

Seek the Blessings...

Of the almighty...
Before you start something new...

May you progress towards light always.

I recently started my own design firm, and hence this Durga Puja was special for me.

Experience

Comes with age.

But you do not need experience to be an expert.

May the force of Durga....

...always be with you...
...in joys and sorrows...

Mishti Doi

A true Bengali delight.

Best relished during Durga Puja festival, across India.

It's best when had in the earthen pots. :)

I love festivals

They give you the time to
appreciate the faith...
appreciate the colors...

and a reason to forget all sorrows and celebrate.

Kuch Meetha Ho Jaaye

Festive Season is full on..

Happy Dusshera..
Shubh Vijaya Dashmi...

:)

Waiting for Enlightenment.....

...to attain some peace.

Father

..
We always have the support of him no matter how big we grow
..

The Last Call

When was the last time you made a call to your old friend.

Why not try to do it again today..

Why not do it NOW?

What if someone were to call you and it was the last call they ever did?

The thought haunts me, but life is such that somewhere or the other this situation arises!

Faith Tree

Faith comes in all forms in India.
From a stone being worshiped to a tree being worshiped.

A tree becomes revered the moment it has an idol on it, or someone places a flower as a sign of worship.

The faith is ignited in any object, and anything can be worshiped.

The questioning is absent. One fails to wonders why? If it can be a tree..why can't it be a furniture?

Or is it not the tree... but the placing of the small idol that made the difference.

Of Tea and Cigarettes..

...and a life spent well.

A year younger...

...
The more I spend time with kids and children.. the more younger I feel.

Birthdays are just a reminder that you have
just grown a year younger !

:)

The harder I work ....

...the luckier I get.

Time

.... it passes by so soon, that you do not know when the shoes wore out... and the journey is still incomplete.

The simple truth ...

Live and Let live.

Thanda Matlab

Coca Cola.

:)

Dhaba Rocks

One of the favorite things about the highways in India is the presence of these dhabas.
T fresh food, a nice experiential ambiance, and loads of memories, bundled with awesome hospitality.

I love the dhabas.

Recycling Faith

As mentioned earlier, the faith continues till ashes to ashes and dust to dust.

This shiv linga (the idolatry form of worship of Lord Shiva) was lying in a pool of dirt and unwanted frames. It was discarded by some.

Someone came along and saw it. It now has a flower offered to it everyday and fresh tika applied.

The faith continues ... no matter where.

What is Faith?

I ask myself the question every time I go out on the streets to do photography.

The simplest of actions by people makes you believe that people are it is something beyond the explainable.

There was a necklace which had a locket that seemed holy, lying on the ground, someone picked it up and placed it on the pillar.

This was not even a temple. Just a painting on the wall. This becomes the temple. The area surrounding it is sacred now. To the extent that people go there without slippers, a mark to show respect. The pillars adorn by the colors of the gods. Elements to signify that there is a holy space that you are entering.

No one dares to touch it. The necklace remains for days... The rains to not dislocate it either. Nature takes force. A force that could reduce us to the basics. The ashes to ashes.. the dust to the dust.

The faith remains.
One day someone else will find that the necklace is rusted. The walls dirty. Will convince the neighbors to pitch in. Or take up the responsibility himself.

The space is revamped.
The faith is re-established.

And the cycle continues.

Tea tastes best...

When you have company.
To chit chat.
To share the moments of the day that made you smile.

Is there anyone out there?

When I look down...

...upon the way the things has gone on in my life..
I smile and be thankful.

Back to Bangalore.

Inside Outside

Life is good when you take some time to explore the other side.

Heading out of town for a week.
Will be back soon.

Keep the Faith

In me ..
and me in you ..

...and together we rule the world.

Lakhon ki Pasand

Chai Bun.

What would I do without chai.

Now what would I do without chai-bun.

Moody Portraits

I am shooting portraits after a really long time and over the next few posts I will be posting some of them here.

And the zebra crossed...

I have always wanted to take panning shots. Though I was well aware of the technique and have tried it a few times before, today I tried a lot more.

It is very difficult to find a street to be filled in exactly the way you want it to be. So patience is the key. I tried for quite a while, before I could get the position of people, an appropriately moving vehicle, and of course decide on the timing when I wanted to press the shutter.

The wait....

...for freedom.
...for sanity.
...for peace.

Independence Beat

Independence Day beats are so different across the country.
Maybe it is also with the time.

I remember when I was a kid, the colony used to be full of patriotic songs, and flavor. Jalebis and boondi ke laddoos being distributed all around. Flags being hoisted at all corners and intersections almost.

I miss it. Maybe its just a different independence beat these days.

Why is he smiling?

Have you ever asked that question when you saw someone smiling?
Or did you just smile in return and move on.

The other day at the Bangalore airport, I saw a person wearing a t shirt, that said, "If you Smile, I will Smile."

I did ...
and then She did.

I had a good flight after that!