India
Outside the Fatehpuri Masjid. Delhi, India. November 2022
After the rain, Patan, Gujarat September 2019
Eeren. Jhalawar, Rajasthan, India. November 2022
Eeren’s family are part of a rag-picking community that lives in a makeshift camp just outside Jhalawar. They are all members of the Pardi Adivasi (tribal) community who originate from Madhya Pradesh in central India. They were once forest dwellers but today collect plastics and glass bottles to sell on to recycling companies. The current rate of payment is 30 rupees for 1kg of plastic items, which equates to about 100 bottles. Sometimes the companies reduce the price to 25 or 23 rupees per kilo. Many people are involved in this work and competition is very fierce. For a single glass bottle, they might receive three rupees. There are about 90 rupees to the £. A cup of street tea in India costs between five and 15 rupees according to location. Conditions in the camp are very basic with no running water or official electricity supply.
Ramnath’s shoe shop, Mumbai, Maharashtra, September 2019
Ramnath has a tiny shop in Dongri, Mumbai., one of Mumbai’s older commercial areas. He is originally from a village in Madhya Pradesh, from where he brought his family to the city a few years ago in search of work and a better life. We spoke for a few minutes, and he was happy to be photographed - but like many people sitting for a picture - he stiffened and put on his formal photo face. I eventually gave up, thanked him and turned to leave. As I walked away, I turned to say goodbye once more and saw that he was scanning the street, looking for customers. That was the shot.
Guni Devi, Pachewar, Rajasthan, November 2022
“Pay me in dollars, I want to buy a house!”
Puthul, coconut seller, Kolkata, West Bengal, September 2018
Hanuman, Bishnoi tribesman, Rohet, Rajasthan. November 2022
“I am 95. I have four children, many grandchildren and great-grandchildren”.
Ranjani at work. Panchla, West Bengal, India. November 2022
Panchla is about 35 kilometres outside Kolkata. There are several small businesses in the town that produce embroidery, using small stones, glass, plastic and other items to decorate saris, dupattas and skirts. Most of the workers are Muslim men but some Hindus also work in this field. I visited one atelier where men from both religions were working together. Ranjani is a Hindu. She will receive 100 rupees for each finished garment (about £1.15). They will then be sold by a third party for about 5,000 rupees.
Dilip Ghosh, chaiwallah,
Beadon Street, Kolkata, West Bengal,
September 2017
This chaiwallah, or tea seller, owns a stall in Beadon Street, North Kolkata. I first photographed him in 2017 when I noticed his striking appearance and the brightly coloured backdrop. I took several shots, bought some tea and chatted with one of his customers who told me that the chaiwallah’s name was Mohan Lal.
A year later I went back to give him a copy of the picture. No-one in Beadon Street knew a chaiwallah called Mohan Lal and I began to think I had the wrong street, but eventually I found him and handed him the picture. He nodded his thanks and passed the photograph to his wife. She became very excited and went to show it to neighbouring traders. He explained to my Bengali speaking friend that his name is Dilip Ghosh and that he has no idea who Mohan Lal might be. In 2019 I used this picture for my first exhibition at the Maison Bertaux Gallery. Dilip has a copy of the poster displayed behind his stall.
Narrow alley. Mumbai, Maharashtra. November 2022