My Favorites Images from भारत INDIA

An older man buying mangoes on the market in Jodhpur

When composing an image, I have a tendency to prefer one without any perspective in it. I like the flat colours.
In Tiruchendur, on the southern coast of Tamil Nadu, I met a few women who came to the temple to pray to Murugan. After the ritual bath, on the beach, in front of the majestic and beautiful temple they needed to dry up their colourful saris. I couldn't resist but to portray them the way I like.Tiruchendur, in the far south of Tamil Nadu, is renowned among Murugan devotees everywhere as one of the greatest centres of the Lord Aru Padai Veedugal’s, literally 'Six Battle Camps'. Indeed, it is here that Murugan and his deva-sena, or army of celestials, confront and vanquish the titan Surapadma and his demonic horde. This struggle is annually re-created at Tiruchendur on the sixth day of Skanda Sashti, the 'Six (days) of Skanda'.

On the Ghats at night in Varanasi

Brahmins praying inside the temple in Mathura, alongside the sacred Yamuna river

At the entrance of the Kumbeshwara temple in Kanchipuram, waiting to open up. One of my favorite images. The brahmin sleeping, the woman in pink begging.

This is the first picture I took when I got to Varanasi, I took it near Assi Ghat.
Those are the steps going up to the temple. If you go to Varanasi, there is a very nice guesthouse where to stay : Sahi river guest house ( devanandmishra@hotmail.com ), it's a delightfully peaceful place overlooking the Ganges.

Assi Ghat an important ghat of Varanasi traditionally constitutes the southern end of the city.

I really can't resist the color combinations one can find in India. Just incredible.
I never saw a country with a sense of colors like India

Morning Prayer in the temple near the Yamuna river in Beautiful Mathura.

A cremation scene atnight on the ghats in Varanasi

Two man elegantly resting at the foot of a tree, near the entrance of the Sujita temple, outside Bodhgaya in the fields.
Bodhgaya is the place where the Buddha attained enlightment..

Some Rickshaw drivers smiling at me next to Movie posters.

Five saddhus I met in Gaumukh. They are coming down from the sources of the Ganges.
You can see the double summit of the Baghirathi in the background. It's part of a national park, well preserved, beautiful.

3 sadhus doing their rituals at the sources of the Ganges. I went up with them .
I already posted an image of them coming down the mountain.
In Gaumukh, tents have been installed for the pilgrims there where everybody can sleep ....
A marvellous place

A couple walking in front of the temple in Gangaikondacholapuram, one of the most beautiful one in Tamil Nadu.
It was built by King Rajendra Chozhan, son of Raja Raja Chozhan, who built the Brihadeeswara Temple at Tanjavur.

Pilgrims on the banks of the Holy Ganga in Varanasi.

A Rajasthani Woman cooking in her kitchen. I don't remember the name of the veggies but it was very good.

Deep Blue is the color of Jodhpur, my favorite city in Rajasthan.

On the occasion of the full moon in february, plenty of beggars sit on the ghats in Varanasi waiting for food or money.
Here, on Assi Ghat.

A young girl in front of her house.
A Play of light in a beautiful place.

A Rajasthani woman making Millet chapatis inside her kitchen in a little village south of Jodhpur.
The entire scene

A picture taken in Patna, the capital of the state of Bihar. Temperature was going up very fast, and this rickshaw driver was having a well earned rest. Difficult light that day.
"Thums" Up is a national drink, with a taste close to the one of Coke, a bit better for me and a lot cheaper..
Patna is a very interesting town with no tourists at all, so it's really quiet for us travelling there..

A woman praying inside the Kali temple in Kolkata.
Such a nice place.

A portrait of Enchie, a Bishnoi woman, shot in a little village near Jodhpur.
She is a charming and lovely lady

A Rajasthani woman coming inside her kitchen to cook lunch. You can see how beautiful and clean the floor is, as always.
And the food was also excellent

The condition of widows can be very difficul in India as elsewhere. This old woman was trying to cross a street even though she couldn't walk.

A woman at the entrance of a temple in the little town of Tiruvariyaru in Tamil Nadu.
A special place.

The Chitrai Festival in April/May is the most important one of the year. It celebrates the marriage of Meenakshi (Parvati) with Sundareswar (Lord Shiva). The two deities, riding on a golden bull and wearing pearl crowns, are brought on a spectacular procession around the town. Lord Alagar’s (Vishnu) procession to the bank of the Vaigai River on the full moon day is one of the most interesting events of the festival.
This picture was taken right in the middle of the street, going down to the river.

A group of Sadhus I met while I was going to have my breakfast in Ram Jhula. I invited them to come with me..

An old woman begging at the entrance of the Kali Temple in Kolkata

A Jain priest inside the main Jain temple in Jaisalmer. These are a group of Jain temples dating back 12th and 15th centuries and are dedicated to various Jain Tirthankars (Hermits). On the walls of the temples, you can find animal & human figures, carved in famous Dilwara style.
These temples are built in the Dilwara style that is famous all over the world for its architecture. The style got its name from the famous 'Dilwara Temples' situated on Mount Abu, a famous Hill station and pilgrimage destination in Rajasthan. The Jain temples in the Jaisalmer Fort are dedicated to Rikhabdevji and Shambhavdev Ji, the famous Jain hermits known as 'Tirthankars'. Like all other structures in Jaisalmer, these temples are craved of yellow sandstones.

A couple of Weavers working on the warp in a workshop of Ayampattai, a little village a few kilometers away from Kanchipuram.
You can spot all the tools and the Jacquard cards.

An couple coming back from the Ghats in Pushkar once having done their prayers

A barber under the arcades of Connaught Circle in New Delhi. Every morning you can spot a lot of them working. I just love the texture of the walls in those alleys. On the left , a bicycle with a milk can...

My waiter reading the Newspaper inside a little restaurant in Pushkar

A young girl playing with the Ocean during a festive day in Mamallapuram

On january 1st, 2006, I walked the 22 klm from Mysore to Brindavan, Karnataka with a group of 8 Jain Sadhvis.

Charminar is one of the most important landmarks of Hyderabad. The monument was built by Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah in 1591 to commemorate the eradication of plague, shortly after he had shifted his capital from Golconda to what now is known as Hyderabad[1]. Legends has it that the emperor Quli Qutb Shah prayed for the end of plague and took the vow to build a masjid on that very place. He ordered the construction of the masjid which became popular as Charminar because of its four characteristic minarets (possibly depicting the first four khalifs of Islam). The top floor of the four-storeyed structure has a masjid which has 45 covered prayer spaces and some open space to accommodate more people in Friday prayers

A landscape for a change, the only time when I used my 70/200mm is to shoot flat landscapes.
I think images become more graphic like that.
Some women working under the supervision of a man, picking up tea in the blue mountains
of Tamil Nadu. This image was shot in a small village at 20km of Conoor. It's beautiful there..

At the Train Station in Lovely Bikaner

Rajuri on the left, Rampal her uncle in the middle and Sita his wife going to their campment outside of Pushkar. They are musician from Pushkar and live on the outskirts of the city, where the camel fair takes place, in tents.

Street vendors in Jodhpur.

A woman preparing the basin to do her laundry, in front of her house.

This is another picture I took in the beautiful Meenaskhee temple in Madurai. This man was praying Hanuman, the monkey god. I stayed a few days in Madurai to get pictures. I could get this light inside the temple usually in the afternoon, between 4:15 pm and 5 pm.
I have been to Madurai 4 times, and will go back for sure. A city I am definitely in love with.

Behind a loaded cart in street of Kolkata

Enchie, a Bishnoi woman near the mill where she grinds Millet.

The Bishnois are a community of nature worshippers in the state of Rajasthan. Bishnois are strong lovers of wild animals. It is because of their protection that in Bishnoi dominated areas, deer and antelope(such as blue bulls, black bucks, chinkaras and chowsinghas) are seen grazing peacefully in their fields despite the fact that the State of Rajasthan where the Bishnois mainly live, face severe shortages of water.

Enchie, a Bishnoi woman grinding millet to make chapatis, inside the hut seen in the previous image. The Bishnois are a community of nature worshippers in the state of Rajasthan. Bishnois are strong lovers of wild animals. It is because of their protection that in Bishnoi dominated areas, deer and antelope(such as blue bulls, black bucks, chinkaras and chowsinghas) are seen grazing peacefully in their fields despite the fact that the State of Rajasthan where the Bishnois mainly live, face severe shortages of water.The sect was founded by Guru Jambheshwar (b. 1451) after a drought in marwar region of India. He had laid down 29 principles to be followed by the sect. Bish means 20 and noi means 9. Thus, Bishnoi translates as Twenty-niners. Further the Guru told to worship lord Vishnu (Bishnu). Thus the sect called vishnoi or Bishnoi. Killing animals and felling trees were banned.

Enchie, a Bishnoi woman coming out of the hut where she stocks grain.
In a village near Jodhpur

A young girl doing her laundry in Moti Bagh, a district of New Delhi.

Papu from the Bopa caste, Rajasthan, India. Bopa Gypsy, is a Nomadic People of the Rajasthan Desert. In Rajasthan it is not uncommon to see people with green eyes.
I met her the first time in 2001. Now she owns a little shop near the Ghats in Pushkar.