My Mumbai, My Perspective.

Mumbai has as special place and importance in me as much as the Indian cricket team has for Sachin Tendulkar. These pics were taken in an unusual winter in Mumbai, December 2010. I set out at 6 am and the first one taken at 6:30 am.

This pic gives me the impression of looking ahead of time, literally. It traces the movement of the train in the next few microseconds. Though I sometimes crib that I cannot change the shutter-speed in my Sony Cybershot W180, the feature rocks in a few instances.

Much has been heard and said about the Mumbai local trains. For me, it is Mumbaikar's best friend. It wears the never-stop spirit of Mumbai on its shoulders. The crowd actually makes it a lot safer, especially at night.   

'Not the look, its job is way more important.' That was the idea behind this pic. I knew the result of clicking it, beforehand. But that it shows motion and that too a continuous one, attracts me towards the local trains. They are the silent (they actually have become a bit noisy now because they were not designed to carry 5000 heads per train) carriers of an entire civilisation commuting daily.

On Monday mornings, there is the weekend's hangover...that lingering effect. I connect that to this pic as the early part of the day has those symbol of night- THE yellow light! 

The faceless newspaper delivery machinery. Like one pic in the 'Chennai through my lens' post, this person too was not bothered at all that I am clicking him. He knew his deadlines are tight and stakes are high. Equally telling is his apathy towards the news in those pieces of paper. After all, he sells newspapers outside the CST subway (must be one of the largest newspaper selling vendor in Mumbai). 

In photography, you can always put in the background, the object you want. I mean you can put it out of focus. But in Mumbai's case, one can never underestimate Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus (CST). It actually meets a million faces and over a hundred trains everyday. I keep admiring the planning done by the British in the late 1840s. They had then realised that this station shall increase in its significance in the years to come. It has served a century and a half since then.

The dog was walking with the duo for quite a distance. When I looked carefully, I realised he was actually a part of the family. When the duo stopped at their...what should I say...ok, settlement on the footpath, he went ahead and got a 'pav'. Was nice to shoot the first and third generation, with a different breed altogether with them.

Interestingly, this is bang opposite the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation head office. 

Rivals in the market...friends when together. Just ti try out the habit of some journalists to read too mjuch into a picture, I can see the invisible bonding between the newspapers as they are so lovingly sitting on the top of each other, waiting to go their way in a few minutes...Oh! This reading too much habit is so lethal!

'Deadlines are sacred in journalism', say many a journalist. They are sacred in delivering journalism - daily. I wonder how these people for years together keep on delivering (quite literally). 

In Mumbai, people bother you the least. When I was clicking this picture, there was a group of nearly 30 people who were all busy in putting supplements and putting the 'line' in order. A quick conversation aabout my name and that's it. Next moment they were happy that I am clicking it. They just wanted to know whether I am from the police department or from a company ( I too didn't get the company part). 

You have to be there to see some moments. To see such a scene in Mumbai, you just don't have to be there in Mumbai, but you have to be there at the right time of the year. This wave-shaped layer of the smoke made a beautiful frame but I wasn't sure whether the lens would capture the smoke. this was because the layer wasn't thick enough - or so I thought. 

Funny experience. This gentledog was sleeping on the road. I framed a pic taking him in focus and putting the background in out-focus. He suddenly woke up and after realising that I was clicking him, started walking towards me in a graceful manner. Stood next to me, completed the sniffing formalities and quietly went away. 

I like shooting the objects which do and shall always remain static among lakhs of time-scarced people and vehicles. Now, this footpath, the lamp-posts, the bus stop...they are like the film studio floors; Sets get built, shooting is completed and the set is dismantled. The floors remain, they remain to be used again by another film, another actor, director and the crew. 

This pic was taken on the return journey to home. There is light at the end of the station. I love this peculiarity of CST. It is so designed that you need not switch on lights during the day. Even though there are thousands of people at the same time, one does not suffocate. In spite of increase in local train services, the station serves the demand. This again makes me wonder about the vision of the British.

You may ask what's there to photograph in this pic. Sometimes, the frame itself makes a nice picture even though there is no concrete subject. The whole composition of and shades of black and white compelled me to click it. 

Travelling on the foot board is punishable under the Indian Railways Act. But, foot board travelling is a phenomenon in Mumbai. The rush and humidity inside the compartment makes it very luring to travel on the foot board. But, it is very dangerous and has proved fatal to several hundreds. Many have died by falling off the train because in extreme rush conditions, it sometimes becomes impossible to withstand the push and pressure.

Optics. Or Optical deformities. They can manipulate beautiful structures! As a photographer, it is obvious to imagine how would the Bandra Worli Sea Link look if it was a tad twisted. 

The sea link is a huge boost to the traffic management initiatives of Maharashtra government. The big hurdle is the narrow road to which this sea link joins in Worli. 

No exaggerations. The cosmopolitan culture of Mumbai has trickled into religion too. Be it Haji Ali or the above photographed Mt. Mary Church at Bandra Bandstand, people from all religions bow their heads here.  

It has been so ingrained in the local culture that there is no complaint or boasting from individuals from any religious community. But it is disturbing to see nowadays religious institutions have to warn couples to behave themselves. The space crunch in Mumbai does make privacy difficult, but according to me, some places are and should be kept sacrosanct. 

Faces. There are millions in Mumbai. the question is how many do we remember? For me, its a big irony - millions of Mumbaikars daily stare at the interiors of the local. But, its all the same. on the other hand, they see so many new faces everyday. How much do WE care to remember even one? This pic symbolises all this. For me.

I was walking one afternoon in my area when I looked at this tree bark. The flowers made a nice frame.