Roof keepers!





Must have been 30 feet high where they rested. Walking on the streets, i noticed them having a light talk, with the evening breeze joining them. With the roof yet to be layed, the built-up space was open to the pattern on the sky.
My SLR had encroached upon the otherwise casual discussion they had. While i looked through the view finder, busy changing the settings, came an unpleasant howl from one of them, not okay with being photographed.

Courtesy: Science of Light for re-inventing the silhouette.

Waiting for an invitation

I drove a short distance away from home to meet a friend, i had not met the last 8 years.
This grilled window belonged to his home.
And the muskteers are reported to have been coming there regularly and sit by that window. Luckily, it was not any military operation nor were the muskets put to use. An intriguing television programme was binding them to the grills.
Pavan, the foregrounder, spoke Telugu, one of the southern Indian languages and could very well understand Tamil.
All this time one could here the rumbling noise of concrete and construction work nearby.The kids belonged there and were found always chalking out a new game plan on the streets that was interrupted by a high volume on the television.
I don't remember if they walked to school, but were practically bright.
The evening that came to pass was the time for me and my friend to invite them inside, for a brief game that we had chalked out.

Lost!


People rushing in to breakfast, queue at the wash area, few of them hastily looking for chairs to sit, bearers speeding up the orders and the manager trying to be fast in settling the bills.
I had been waiting for quite sometime to place an order when i found somebody quite unaware of all the turmoil.
Dressed up with holy marks on the forehead, he was in a state of deep sleep, unaffected by the jolting to & fro movements of his mother who was breaking fast. Neither the aroma of masala dosa nor the howls of the bearers could wake him up. He was a great scene of stability.
Trivandrum was the place.
I had given away 5 more minutes before i ordered a dosa. When the order was at my table, this little guy had left the scene, unperturbed.

Call of Water!


These houses were static as concrete like their counterparts on Land.
Perhaps a pose for breath for those Ferrymen.
Taking a few days off from traumatic households and closed office spaces, these mobile houses are most sought after by many for relaxing and celebration.
A watery landscape with Coconut tree umbrellas?
Alappuzha is the place and i vividly remember my toes being gently cleansed by the serene backwaters, when our ferry swam past a passage of such boat-houses.
It was pleasant to watch the inhabitants of one boat greeting the other when the latter ferried past.
Families and Friends got together on these boat-houses. Couples, old and young enjoyed the comforts of Spa and traditional kitchen.
With the ferryman and the cook at one's disposal, traveling on these boats for a couple of days can prove to be a momentary period of absolute rest, before vacation gets over.

Being his own lamp

He wasn't one of those reluctant sellers who usually get annoyed at the sight of a camera. And probably he had seen many such.
Hurricane lamps are one with 70% of this country that lives in villages and were named so in the belief that they don't turn off even if a hurricane strikes.
This humble-looking corn seller seems to be contemplating on a change of name.
It took all his patience to light it up.
The legs of the wooden stand confined the Man and his Lamp to their private 2D-space.
It was 7pm at Elliots beach.

Indian Engineering

Soaring high and expanding wide, this grand Gopuram at the Thiruvannamalai temple challenged the wide angle capabilities of my lens. It was crafted with passion - One of those structures that baffles modern engineers.
I should have been a little patient to include the right hand side corners. But a    14 km walk around the sacred mountain (encompassing the temple) was exhausting.
Perhaps a bad excuse now!
Thiruvannamalai- the home to many enlightened souls that are believed to walk the land in subtle forms. And this temple gate seems to have been so constructed to indicate the various stages, an aspirant graduates through in the process of evolving.

There he was!


Friend!
That reminded me of a few close associates.
One of the shops by the roadside in Munnar featured this group key chains.
A brief pause for nostalgia before i took this picture and another one now before i write further..............
Nothing was very special about this key chain, except that this imprinted 'Friend' stood out brave among those who were shy to reveal their identities.
An Analogy to a real-life situation?

I continue to hope.

Men at Marina

One of those pictures that gave me an elaborated sense of satisfaction.
Though it is fading away like the slowly setting sun at the backdrop.
An ever-unsatisfied urge grows, that demands for betterment.
This picture was set at Marina, Chennai - An amateur training ground for some Gymnasts who cannot afford urban sophistication.
Speaking to the trainer, whom i came to know as one of those cine stuntmen who risk to live, i learnt that about 10 youngsters who train under him aspire to be stuntmen.
This picture for me, represents a state of inertia.
The executor never knows how he will end up - A question that always confounds stuntmen.

Mittais on the coast





"As if they had bequeathed a part of those packet contents to the sky, but with a discoloration."
They are two among the thousands who sell, the much beloved of all 'Mittais'.
The Corniche at Pondichery witnesses many such.
Taking a few minutes off the mundane walkways, they could be discussing the strategies of effective selling.
On a bright noon which hardly witnesses children, these two will have to wait until evening.
No cubicles to sit in. For a few, the natural scene drives the clock faster.