Posted instagrama minute read (About 130 words)

TRIBES | Friday, April 2, 2021

9:57 PM

#TRIBES: several days after bulldozers arrived - at 4am - and demolished their village in #Vijaypur, the villagers were planning a tribe to visit the Ajay Badoo, the district collector - a magistrate - to complain and asked if I would meet them there. I was just a photographer but the actions of the authorities were outrageous, and I understood the power an external observer could have. A 350km trip from their village. I spoke with their chief about their plans, “Only a few of us will be able to, the women cannot come, who will look after the children?” Two days later… every able-bodied woman in the village is at the office, carrying the children in their arms. #india #gujarat #demolition #tribes #nomads #womenandchildrenfirst #mehsana

Posted instagrama minute read (About 112 words)

THEUSUALSUSPECTS | Friday, April 2, 2021

9:47 PM

#THEUSUALSUSPECTS: certain communities were codified as automatic criminals in law, meaning that they could be arrested without evidence or due process, harassed and subject to indignities on the whims of the authorities. Those statutes were overturned and removed - not very long ago - but it is harder to change attitudes and prejudices that have been reinforced for generations. #VSSM worked tirelessly to return these tribes their rights and it often began with voting cards, enshrining their rights to rations and work and legal standing. Appreciate your right to vote, politicians will respect you more if you can and do. #tribes #nomads #denotifiedtribes #gujarat #votercardpower #disenfranchised #india #vote #photojournalism

Posted instagrama few seconds read (About 49 words)

TRIBES | Wednesday, March 31, 2021

11:33 PM

#TRIBES: this two-year old would be around 14 now. Has #India done enough in the meantime to give her opportunities denied to her parents and community? Or is life worse for women in 2021? I feel a follow-up story is due. #gujarat #nomads #photojournalism

Posted instagrama few seconds read (About 69 words)

TRIBES | Wednesday, March 31, 2021

11:27 PM

#TRIBES: as many of the nomadic tribes look to settle down, the odds are still against them, often lacking voting rights, historically labelled - in law - as members of a criminal tribe, courtesy of British rule, help comes slowly. Other #Gujaratis are often unaware of their fellow humans in their own state, preferring to explore the rest of the world first. #nomads #india #gujarat #photojournalism

Posted instagrama few seconds read (About 84 words)

COBRA | Wednesday, March 31, 2021

11:17 PM

#COBRA: although their venom is drained, they still bite - picture of that soon - and I’ve never seen anything move so fast in my life. A camera focuses your attention to the degree that photographers frequently end up in risky situations, like being within striking distance of a cobra. This shot shows you how close the chief really was to the snake. The things people did to make a living. #india #gujarat #vadi #tribes #nomads #snake #snakecharming #photojournalism

Posted instagrama few seconds read (About 75 words)

SNAKECHARMING | Wednesday, March 31, 2021

11:00 PM

#SNAKECHARMING: to underline the point that this tradition is dying, the chief’s son - backing away in the doorway - has lost control of the snake, and has been saved by his friend. Mike Davis, the great picture editor, observed that he’s looking out and not at the cobra suggesting he’s more worried about what other people are thinking. #india #vadi #nomads #tribes #gujarat #snake #cobra

Posted instagrama minute read (About 120 words)

TRIBE | Wednesday, March 31, 2021

10:56 PM

#TRIBE: the chief of the #Vadi here is a magician and crack snake charmer. The tribe has suffered from the outlawing of snake charming - seven years in prison - without any alternative or assistance given by the government. I was upset to discover that in 2018, four women from this tribe were attacked and one was killed after accusations of child kidnapping. There is way too much to unpack in a single Instagram post, but it’s complicated. Outlawing traditional livelihoods is one thing - once you’ve seen the awfulness of dancing bears, you’d sign the legislation - but leaving people in poverty and starvation is another. #india #nomads #gujarat #photojournalism #snake #cobra #snakecharmer

Posted instagrama few seconds read (About 37 words)

TRIBES | Wednesday, March 31, 2021

7:01 PM

#TRIBES: human labour is cheap and abundant, and leaves room for little else in people’s lives. It took quite the fight to change this in Britain. #india #gujarat #nomads #photojournalism

Posted instagrama few seconds read (About 26 words)

TRIBES | Wednesday, March 31, 2021

10:49 AM

#TRIBES: the #Romani people originated in #India, and there are still many nomadic tribes wandering through Western India. #nomads #gujarat #photojournalism

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