AN OFF DAY IN DELHI

photo by Sanjit Das

I have had a pretty busy couple of weeks. I have been to an different state every week since the start of the elections here and I am really tired. A few days ago I helped my friend Sanjit light portrait of a CEO for a matrimonial website where this picture was taken. I look like such a man of leisure lounging on his estate in this picture. The sad part is it only reminded me of how tired I am. Since I don't have an estate of my own with a pool to lounge by I did the next best thing an exhausted photojournalist could do. I took the day off. Keep in mind it is 110(f) here. II went to the pool, took a swimming class, flirted with a pretty blonde, grocery shopped for a dinner party, and had several beers and dinner with Sanjit and Suzanne.I pretty much fucked off the entire day. No archiving, no editing, no shooting, no research, just an day off. After weeks of politicians, rock throwing, flash bangs and tear gas, writing, archiving, researching, shooting, early mornings, and late nights, I think I earned a little break. Tomorrow I am back to work. Today can be my Sunday.

BACK TO THE GRIND

It's been a busy week since coming back from Kashmir. I've been to one embassy or another to work on a j-visa to Pakistan, hosted a new friend, prepared for the Stumping Grounds gallery show, and spent a couple of mornings at an akharas (wrestling gym) to shoot Kushti. Kushti, is a traditional style of Indian wrestling that takes place in a clay pit on a soil mixed with ghee(denatured butter). Each wrestler is responsible for tending to the soil as well as adhering to a strict regimen of exercise, a diet of mostly milk, almods, ghee, chapattis, and eggs, and celibacy that is meant to give them both physical and spiritual strength. It's been fun to watch. I'm trying to get back to a promise I made to myself in an earlier post that I would do more portraits. I'm also working on a short multi-media piece that I hope to have finished before heading to Pakistan next week. I'm crossing my fingers. I have been behind on my archiving, captioning and photoshop work the last couple of weeks and really need to catch up. I've had more fun working and living here the past few weeks, but I really need to get back to the grind.

TEAR GAS DAYS AND H*@H H@%H NIGHTS

In Kashmir covering the fourth stage of India's election. It's been four days of long days of shooting, walking, eating, drinking, the more shooting, walking, eating drinking, and then more shooting eating, drinking, topped off by a pretty wild day of tear gas, rock throwing, and angry threatening rock mob. What more can you ask for? Despite all of this, Kashmir has given me some of the friendliest and giving people I have ever met, the most beautiful mountains I have ever seen, and the best time I have since being in India. Srinagar,how I love you.