My Notes to and for Dilli, Day 1

I did not start my day with a love letter to a Barsaati in Dilli, but it so happened that during the middle of a hot, gloomy day, a friend poured in a picture from one of the many social media accounts we follow, the picture and the note was a story of a certain Barsaati in Dilli, now inhabited by a young boy.

It was a letter of love to this Barsaati in particular and all the others that spread across Dilli, in general. The picture was a big one with windows encircling a room full of colors and runners on the floor. I quickly weaved a story in my head, about the boy who lives there. It was so quick that I almost forgot to realize that the note that came with it, below the picture was a note about me, and many like me who are young, and living out of Barsaatis across this city, which now has my heart.

I live in Dilli now, and I live in a Barsaati which is small, has a tiny kitchen and the bathroom which can fit me comfortably inside it. My Barsaati ends as soon as it begins, it does not have life sized windows and curved hallways like the one in the picture, but it is a Barsaati I love.

At the head of the queen sized bed which covers most of the floor space in my Barsaati, I have hung postcards, postcards with people, roads and colors inside them and sometimes when I am fast asleep at night, the paper tapes let the postcards go. The postcards then fly around for a little while and settle onto the dust beneath the head of my bed.

My Barsaati also accumulates a lot of dust, little particles of nothing, and bits of paper with hair tangled in them.

The first little furniture I got for my Barsaati was a book holder, a wooden holder from the Amar Colony market, with its wooden legs broken. The book holder sits beside my bed, on a smallish elevated platform that the room came with.

I love quilts, and so my Barsaati has come to love them too. They sit on my bed, hanging from the sides. I wake up and leave them as they are. During hot summer days, just like today, they spread themselves onto the bed I slept all night, and relax into the heat.

My Barsaati sees packages coming in, and going out. It sees men bringing liters of water every week, it sees friends like family walk in and out of itself. My Barsaati smells of Bengali daal, cut onions, and mixed pickle. Sometimes, it smells of rotten tomatoes that I forget to cook with, and fresh coriander I sit to cut. My Barsaati is moody during hot days and calm during the windy nights.

Pillows scattered around, and sneakers left unclean, my Barsaati smells of home, today, tomorrow and everyday.

When I leave my Barsaati, I hope to leave with it some stories, some smells, and some silence so that with the next human living here, she can weave stories of her own that smell like silences and also smell like noise.

United Nations; What is happening in Yemen?

Thousands of vulnerable Yemenis are stuck at a situation of war. There are more civilians being killed on a regular basis alongside migrants and asylum seekers from African countries. Humanitarian operations still face considerable challenges in ensuring humanitarian aid to the people who really need it.

Today morning, the United Nations Security Council sat to discuss the conditions of Yemen and the efforts being taken by the UN to resolve the legitimate concerns of the Yemeni people. The meeting comprised of the reactions about the Hudaydah Agreement, its implementation and the challenges being faced by civilians at large. The aftermath of war still remains the most vulnerable aspect of fighting a war. Assistance for Yemen to meet the basic needs of the population and develop the economy were the chief aspects of concerns in the Council meeting. The importance of keeping ports and airports open so that aids could keep traveling to the people who really need it, was mentioned by the delegate from Peru.

Yemen has been in a situation of distress repeatedly. The need to abide by International Law, ensure Obligation of all parties to facilitate humanitarian relief, Respect and continue funding for humanitarian response plan and calling for support towards the Yemeni economy have been the watchwords suggested to ensure a smooth peace transition process in Yemen.

Takeaways;

• Every country present at the council called for ensuring cooperation to support the Hudaydah agreement and urgent need for the ‘UN assessment team to verify and asses the oil tanker in Yemen’ which poses serious humanitarian and climate risk in the Red Sea region.
• Though partners are able to deliver aid, there are unacceptable delays in the process. There has been repeated delaying and blocking off projects by NGOs in regards to humanitarian aid. Terrorism is still a threat. UN and NGOs have often been forced out of Yemen and are till now routinely blocked. 
• The International Community recognizes the immense suffering civilians in Yemen are undergoing. Countries unanimously understands the importance of negotiations and dialogue to end the horrible conditions in Yemen. Russia called for a comprehensive de-escalation and continued international effort to distribute aid in a non-discriminatory basis regardless. 
• Recommendations from countries such as Poland among others came to develop the Yemeni economy urgently and advance humanitarian aid in an increased rate. There was recommendations made for introducing a regular program of foreign exchange to stabilize the exchange rate in Yemen. 

Peace processes can be murky. Bringing peace to a war-torn zone can be the work of a number of months if not years. Countries across the world often waste time by making long, unwanted statements thanking delegates at the United Nations. But, even an awareness about problems in the world, civilian casualties, the need to establish international law and an intention (no matter how bleak) to solve the situation… goes a long way to establish the process of peace!

 

UN Security Council Renews Partial Lifting of Arms Embargo on Somalia

The Security Council Members had been ‘almost’ busy discussing the security challenges in Somalia, the extreme violence being created by Al Shabaab and the work of MINUSCA in extending peace and ensuring smooth conduction of upcoming elections to be held. Though Russia and China expressed reservations about the resolution through ‘Abstentions,’ they did not veto it either. So, it was allowed to pass.

On November 15, the Security Council adopted a resolution on the Somalian sanctions regime, renewing for one year the partial lifting of the arms embargo on Somali Security Forces.  Previous discussions on the sanction resolution expressed concerns about the importance of sanctions and how it has helped in keeping weapons away from the hands of the terrorist groups. But, reports and recommendations from the expert panel on the situation in Somalia consolidated that sanctions were doing more harm than good. It was preventing the federal government of Somalia from accessing arms they required for security purposes. The draft resolution mandates that prior permission from the council is still anyway required for delivering heavy as well as small arms to Somalian Security Forces. The Arms Embargo prevents heavier weapons from reaching Somalia and groups like Al Shabaab. The partial lifting of the ban does not promise a mountain of changes for the Somalian government but introduces more hope for understanding serious recommendations!  

Context 

Since the year 1992, the Security Council has imposed several versions of a general and complete arms embargo on Somalia to deal with the vulnerable security conditions in the region. In previous statements during the month of October and November, discussions were held about renewal of the resolution and countries pursued a healthy discussion regarding the work of MINUSCA, security in the region and future work that was still required.

Countries such as the UK supported the sanctions regime and said that the arms embargo was put to help Somalia. They said that security sector reform could only happen if there were some restrictions set to prevent militant groups like Al Shabaab from accumulating arms. France  agreeing had validated that the arms embargo hinders the terrorist group Al Shabaab to supply themselves with weapons and hence it had to be continued. The US (nothing unusual) was more steadfast and aggressive in approach when it  asked the Somalia government to actually start cooperating with the UN mandate, engage with the panel of experts and support their work.

Security Council 15 Nov  

Resolution 2498 of the Security Council which renews the sanctions on Somalia for one more year passed on November 15. 

Abstention justifications were given by Russia and China in particular, quite elaborately but they did not issue a veto keeping in mind the security situation in Somalia and with elections coming up, time was running out for Somalia to hold on any longer without the renewal.

Russia and China, both were concerned about the wording and questioned the process used by UK to come up with the resolution.

Firstly, they thought the inclusion of countries such as Djibouti and Eritrea into the same resolution was unfair. Russia thought, the resolution wrongly categorized all these countries within the same scenario which makes the process much more complicated legally and technically. 

They also had reservations regarding the human rights theme being heavily included within the mandate because they believed that the issue of human rights is to be dealt with, by UNHRC and not by SC in particular.

Russia and China also had concerns regarding the process of drafting the resolution.  

Somalian representative to the Council ended with remarks that were both positive and skeptical. They did not seem too happy though! Somalia emphasized that though Al-Shabbab is being seriously dealt and monitored by the international community, the root cause of the problem is still not being properly understood.  He also mentioned skepticism about the military base in Berbera to be in clear violation of sovereignty of Somalia.  

Somalia also emphasized the need for reports regarding security situation in Somalia to be more attentive, professional and evidence-based. They harped on a reliable mechanism to be brought in to check when cases are wrongly made.  

What does this say about sustainable solution to reach lasting peace in Somalia? Maybe it gives some hope about the international community still being concerned about security but not enough hope about the speedy resolution tendencies of the UN! 

Signing off until next time..  

A case for the ratification of ‘individual complaint procedure at the international level’ to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (OPIC) at the UN

There are certain issues which are as important as arms, weapons, border firing and maritime disputes but we tend to value them less by calling them ‘softer aspects of security.’ The UN in an effort to discuss why states should ratify the provision of ‘lodging international complaint’ in the OPIC, gathered in New York headquarters of the UN.

This side event at the UN New York headquarters was hosted on the 8th of November, raising the issue of ratification of The Third Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the child (UNCRC) on a Communications Procedure. It refers to the establishing of an individual and inter-states complaints procedure in OPIC. It sets up the much required inquiry procedure for child right violations beyond national borders. It allows children from states who are parties to the Protocol to bring the complaints directly to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child.

Alex Conte, the Executive Director of Child Rights Connect says “OPIC is an International Human Rights Treaty which acts as a mechanism to provide justice for children. This system is especially applicable when the national government fail to provide protection to a child from a situation of conflict. OPIC puts children on the threshold to access rights and effective remedies for their own selves.”

OPIC is the only body which provides the mechanism to a child that allows her/him to have full access to rights. The inquiry commission in it is an important aspect of understanding and highlighting violations of child rights especially in situations of armed conflict and sexual violation. why are the states not ratifying the provision of registering complaints internationally, then?

They do not because the provision tends to put them in a state of vulnerability. It is an international complaint mechanism because children are being considered as right holders. States are apprehensive of ratifying it because children who are at risk or are victims of violence, this system allows them to report the complaints directly in an international forum and call for action.

OPIC calls for more accountability from the states.The ratification of the optional protocol by the states will in turn strengthen national protocol and justice systems, says Nataj Maalla M’jid, who is the Special Representative of the Secretary General on Violence against Children. Surprised much that the states want to stay away from it?

The strong legal framework that calls for equal access for children by addressing discrimination, would need the states to look into their justice systems at the national level. The importance of direct accountability, elimination of middle layers to address child right issues is what we need in the world today.

Benyam Mezmur, member of the UN committee on the Rights of the Child talked about how complicated child right cases can be. The pending cases can pertain to several challenges he said. The confusion regarding the child’s age, involves psychologists, doctors to evaluate age determination through bone and teeth structures but it is important to bring into the forefront discussions of understanding child violations and the importance of it.

We might sometimes ask, what do the international organizations do? Where lies the accountability system? We ask this because we fail to know about the constant negotiations, discussions that happen around them. Growing our purview to understand what is happening, is sometimes the first step we can take to addressing the complaints we keep complaining about!

ICC talks about Gender Balanced Recruitment at the UN

In New York, world affairs unfold each day. Some of them I have been able to witness first-hand at the UN. The Special Rapporteurs present their reports, First committee discusses Disarmament measures and Russia fights with the US in the Security Council. Surprise, Surprise! Having had lost almost all faith in the system, it was not until I started attending the meetings, the arguments, the resolutions and listening to the work reports that I started thinking about writing what I see and what I hear at the UN.

This series is perhaps for all those students who are as delusional by the UN system as I used to be. For the ones who only read about what the ‘UN fails to do’ and talks about ‘how stagnant the system is.’

It was one such morning, a cold windy-day in New York City when the NYWG Meeting commenced and ICC registrar staff gathered to discuss the tools of ensuring a representative and diverse Gender/ethnic balance in the International Criminal Court. 

Geographical Representation and Gender Balance at the ICC 

Background

International criminal Court has been taking actions to improve this agenda of gender balance and representation. The Court plans to analyze and implement  strategic plans and the issue of unconscious bias to implement better geographical and gender balance through performance appraisal systems for hiring and recruiting staff.

1. ICC has just completed a series of missions in Korea, to understand the reason for low engagement of women in ICC. Direct Engagement with the country helped ICC discover some issues which are hindering the process of recruitment and promote balance in the employment system.

Report on Current Scenario 

28 professional vacant posts at currently available at the court in Netherlands. Historically half the number is has always been filled by internal candidates. 20-30 post vacancies are generally available per year, according to statistics.

Currently, there are around 3 men to 1 female in senior levels of ICC. The long-term strategy includes decreasing the number of non-represented state’s number. Over-representation is being targeted, in Asia the gap is significant.

Steps that have been taken 

1. Mentoring program for women introduced in 2019 and will continue in 2020. 55 female colleagues have already been registered
2. Gender focal point Introduction has been accounted
3. Staff engagement survey has been introduced to target and address the significant difference between male and female employees.
4. Outreach programs have been instituted to spread the word and making use of the already existing capacities

Policy Level 

1. Flexible working arrangements- to enable work, private life balance especially among women
2. Outreach missions to ensure geographical and gender balance for women
3. Using of leadership framework to pursue the same goal
4. Recruitment and sourcing efforts have been increased by – Linking and sourcing possibilities to target female candidates.

Geographical Representation 

1. Closer collaboration with stakeholders through outreach
2. Outreach by enabling integrated and customized approach
3. Training for unconscious bias in 2020, establishing working groups can collaborate and maximize the cooperation through the results. 

Recommendations by CBF (Committee on budget and finance) from Committee to be addressed by ICC 

1. The recommendation implies a different and pro-active approach to tackle the issue of gender balance and to set a target date for achievement
2. Freezing hiring from the category of non-state parties and giving opportunity for the states which are non-represented

Sometimes the UN leaves me pleasantly surprised, glad that maybe we are not as stagnant as we would like to believe after all! Signing Off until UN makes me hopeful again.

New York, New York

There is always something happening in New York that one only comes to know after it is over. I starting realising it only, long after, I read it in this beautiful book my friend forced me to read by Bill Hayes. New York, they say, isn’t silent enough, but I would say it is enough to make you want you stop to look around for a moment and to rush for the next metro before it’s too late.

When I finally was able to recover my password for my WordPress account, I realized Budapest had passed out for me in a lull. I hadn’t written about it, my camera hadn’t taken enough pictures and I cannot recall enough streets. I did not want New York to pass off like dusk does, every day. In the blink of an eye, suddenly and sometimes all at once.

Being away from people you love, takes its toll. Takes a toll on all of yourself and then comes back with a lot of emptiness. The kind of emptiness which only hits you long after you have settled in. I feel that way now. Being hit and being used to being hit, both together amidst the big New York City. I have deleted all of what I have written and written again. Wrote all of it again only to realize that I was not very sure of how I wanted to really remember New York City.

Will it be like a quiet, busy morning filled with a lot of comfort or a rush of wind with its heat and coldness breezing and carrying me away? Will it be the old parts of the city or the busy streets with gigantic zebra-crossings? Will New York rest at the window sill on my tiny room filled with familiar smells from home or be busy with the new issues of colourful magazines and tall building doors I pass every day?

Maybe at the end, New York for me shall be in the little Italy of Manhattan, the big shops of SoHo, the blue and red umbrellas of Chinatown, the almost perfect distanced zebra-crossing from Times Square and the subway stops where numbers end and begin. Maybe I will keep writing about them, all of it and some of it a little more sometimes, till I don’t start feeling the familiar smells, my best friend’s blue wall, my people and their never-ending trails of thoughts, my grandmother’s bangle sound at the corner of the old sink, my sister and mother’s bright gleamy eyes and my baba’s mind full of dreams.

If something needs to go viral, it’s Nanette

” My favourite sound in the whole world is the sound of tea cup finding it’s place on a saucer,  it is very very difficult to flaunt that lifestyle on a parade” says Hannah Gadsby while I take time to come into terms with the brilliant show that it is. Flaunting their lifestyle in a parade, my people, where do the quiet gays go? ‘ is how Hannah draws back the curtains from one of the many ‘hushed conversations’ in our society about people who are different than the apparent ‘normal’. From women, to lesbians to taboos and obsession over the white skin, this woman emerges into less of a man and more of a woman. Or shall I say, brings out there, the human being in her.

Comedians are often categorized into compact ice-box compartments which are thrown within strict definitions of humour. With comedians popping up on each doorstep now, it would be a unfair if I did not confess that I had been missing the sharp witty turns and sarcasm from among their content, unless I discovered this wonder of a show. If something needs to go viral on the internet, it needs to be this marvelous show where Hannah portrays emotions through comedy while saying why she intends to quit comedy, in turn. I perhaps did not make sense out there, but the flamboyance with which this woman describes identity, and manifests the idea of tolerance is a kind of portrayal I have never witnessed before. Through the night my only activity was to wonder, how someone could find the exact words to portray such sharp feelings as those.

There are talks, movements, discussions and debates on feminism, identity and voices against racial discrimination that I hear on social media, on a daily basis. Sometimes, I realize that the reason why I became a comfortable loner at the end of three years of college was more to do about my ‘different opinions’ about politics, identity, rights and sarcasm than my apathy for people in general. I would hence say Nanette made me feel at home in the middle of a world where I often feel like an outcast due to difference in my perspectives.

Watch it if you have not already. Watch her talking about the gender neutrality of colours, watch her talk about why comedy feels like self-deprecating humour for her and how she is not ready to succumb in it anymore. Watch her live in the same world as we do and still not transform manifested definitions into her own beliefs. I have given away a lot of ideas from the show, right here while writing my blog. The ideas have stung me and made me so angry that I wanted to scream. The words she used, made me cry and laugh and cry again. There is no spoiler I can probably give. I can tell you the lines she used and the sentences she exclaimed! but that can never do justice to her content, expressions and presence.

Hannah says ‘I don’t assume bald babies to be boys, I consider them to be angry feminists and I treat them with respect’, only to introduce me to a perspective perhaps I had never imagined before. If you’re feeling blue, don’t worry, blue skies are right ahead, says she. I believe so too.

If you want to change, create change, they say be the change yourself. Watch this to step on the first path of change. Watch this to learn, to know, to break preconceived false notions and watch this to be able to understand the amount of power words can really have, on minds. Watch this for only and only Hannah.

 

—Nikkon Balial

#3 Capturing styles while being distracted by bright colours!

Bright colours have never been my cup of tea. Bright colours have never entered my wardrobe or I have never pulled them out when I needed clothes! Indigo on the other hand has been my favourite print. The very idea of Indigo blue has always made me happy. Styling contrasting outfits like these and two women carrying each look off with panache was something I was overjoyed about!

While shooting and experimenting with clothes, it sometimes so happens that everything is not under your control! on our Sunday, the situation was exactly that when the skirt I wanted to make Shubhanjana wear did not look right and the look that I wanted to create fell flat on the face. The two styles that happened rather randomly on Roshni and Shubhanjana on a Sunday were not only very impulsively styled but worked magically on both their body types.

  Roshni wore her indigo printed skirt as a dress as she tied it around the neck. I have always adored her sense of style which has mostly been baggy and comfortable. Making her experiment with this was a little scary but she was a sport and was ready with whatever I wanted her to try on. It was while shooting her that I realised about my changing interests. Not being a fashion blogger/model herself like Shubhanjana, I had to convince her really hard to come and let me take her pictures! and while I was at work, her expressions caught me and remained with me. For a while I even lost track that I wanted to capture clothes and not her expressions!

This dress which was originally a skirt is a kind of print one can wear all the time. Being the classic example of dressing up a normal everyday skirt, this look ended up being my favourite from all the other looks of hers. Also, portraying this Indo-western vibe, with my worn out Fabindia chappals, she carried it with grace.

Look 2

Shubhanjana is never hard to style! this look was actually the styling which was done by all three minds and it would be unfair if I said I did much. Bright colours have never been my thing. It was Roshni who suggested Shubhanjana to wear what she did and I had the pencil skirt in my bag. This pencil skirt is a go-to. If there is any staple I actually have in my wardrobe that is, this pencil skirt. I don’t remember anymore when and from where I got it from though, hence you can guess it’s age!

I have no idea how the pencil skirt fit this beautiful tall woman! and orange is not a colour I would ever be able to carry! I think sometimes in life one needs to experiment and I am forever astonished with this woman’s ability to agree to random bits of clothing I want her to wear! This outfit actually inspired me to want to wear orange myself!

 

I suggest everyone to have this pencil skirt and it will be your best friend to wear with a loose t-shirt or even with a blue formal shirt. I being a very boring person on most days always prefer a loose t-shirt over any thing else. If I had to carry something to a desolate island, it would my a t-shirt, hence I honestly believe anything can be dressed up and down with one.

Black is the colour to choose when you are confused and worried about what to put on and look put together in!A pencil skirt can work wonders no matter what shape and size you are! also remember to opt for a midi one, if you can.

 

 

Capturing Fashion #2

Trying to style someone who already has a very distinct and personal sense of style, was something I didn’t really think through. As I saw this woman coming from far away with a big bag and constantly wiping dripping sweat off of her forehead, I was reminded of those endless conversations where I kept randomly picking out closet staples and asking her whether she had another of those in a different, absurd colour.

This woman is a tall, dark, beautiful young woman I had the pleasure to meet during Apeejay Kolkata Literary Meet. She was not just a treat to look at but ended up being one of the most obedient people I have ever met. For the better part of a Sunday she decided to reserve her opinions completely like abruptly switching off neon light and sat there following each and every absurd idea I wanted her to implement.

Look 1

She was my doll and I was dolling her up. At least I was really trying my best to. The first look was something i was really confident about and secretly I knew she was not, at all. Who ever pairs a flared long skirt with a straight-fit kurta? honestly, the initial idea was a pencil skirt beneath but somehow I just because random and wanted her to try out this flared skirt instead. Do you want to see how it turned out?

The silver neck piece came out from her bag, adding just the right amount of accessory to her outfit. This might be a drab outfit to some, I am generally a very drab person. But, this outfit carries the elegance which Shubhanjana pulled off brilliantly. This look could work very well, for any party or gathering where the mother always asks us to wear something ‘appropriate for the occasion’ !

As she sat three on the stool with her white sneakers peeping out, that tall frame of hers just stood out. The straight fit kurta from Fabindia still looked straight and the kurta which is generally what I wear to every wedding miraculously fit her right!

That was supposed to be the first look and I think she nailed it more than I did with the little styling that I was able to do. That silver choker like neck piece added a little more glam than I expected and my reward for the first outfit was as Shubhanjana suddenly smiled in between the shots saying “Damn man! this look really worked”.

 

Look 2

This was actually the third look as we shot it at the end. I had the idea right in my head but I remember asking her at the last moment ” tui saree porte parish toh?” Being the disgusting amateur stylish that I was, I didn’t know how I would drape a saree. The only thing I was really excited about was the makeup for which i almost had to do nothing on her face because well, she is flawless.

This look is my absolute favourite. I think, always shall be. The blouse was a crop top that Roshni had sent me pictures of. It had floral designs on it which were almost invisible on a white colour. I wanted her to wear a pinkish, violet saree on it and she looked ravishing in front of a white wall.

This saree was not worn in a natural way, I though the pallu or Aachol around the neck would perhaps look nice. I think, people with tall frames and long necks look really nice with the pallu encircled around the neck. Honestly, I am none of the two and it still worked for me when I wore it.Her skin colour almost looked like it was made for the saree. The off-shoulder and knot were improvisations later made, you know, like the ones which come to everyone’s minds as they look at each other!

Every morning, as I have to get ready to go out, unless there is something I have bought the previous day itself, it is always a struggle to choose attires. With all these styling ideas, almost crippling me, I am nothing better in choosing for myself the clothes I wish to wear.

Shubhanjana was a treat. It was all about a little over the top and regal for her. The attempt was trying to keep it more wearable and     those metallic heels along with the saree would never have been possible if she hadn’t gotten them from Ajio! I wish she had a smaller shoe size.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Fashion and styling is perhaps very everyday. Not really as much of a task we kind of bring them down to be. It could be just adding in a little extra amount of pattern or colours which are a bit more risky into, outfits and attires.

 

P.S. See you soon with the next set of ravishing women who inspire me each time with their sense of style! also let me know how you like this!

Woman with elegance- Shubhanjana Das

Pictures taken by – Nikkon Balial

Capturing fashion and emotions #1

This blog is a little different from the ones I generally write. Trying to weave stories and ideas of poetry, my blog has been written remembering all those tales and times I accidentally capture as I pass through life. This piece on the other hand, is a little insane, weirdly experimental and very unlike me. Over the years, as I crawled out of a pair of dungaree to an almost similar size of culottes, I looked at myself and noticed a change. Perhaps it was more in the mind than in the attire or it just might have been the other way round. Who knows?!

Thus, when the idea of photographing people with dynamic senses of style occurred to me, I was surprised and inactive at first. The people I wanted to photograph were of different kinds and I also culminated in me this bizarre idea of trying to style some of them as well. I am no fashion blogger and ruffles, patch-work and glittery glam are way out of my league. In a world where colours and patterns, my obsession with grey tried to peek and create something new. It was absurd and stupid but I kind of happened to like it.

The people I decided to focus my lens were varied. Some were very close friends of mine while others I had always seen as parts of social gatherings and I never had any clue about what they had been thinking. These were people who worked oversized, baggy, glitters, metallic, sheer and colours beautifully. I thought this could be a project and I began work like I had no other work in my life!

I have started this journey just yet and there are so many more people to know and click. Sitting there on the floor, the very first day and watching two phenomenal women dress up their hair in a bun and apply lipstick quickly on the upper lip, I decided this project was worth a shot, not just for capturing fashion but for clicking emotions away.

They say, when you start something new, ideas crop up as you embark on the journey. This photo series gave me an array of ideas which I had never thought of before. As I have never really studied photography, I honestly know nothing about it and it stays the same even after all these days. But, I wanted to capture moments, the sudden swirl of the hair, a pleat of the blue skirt or the silver neck piece that was missing a bead just like they were, through they monochromes and patterns..

The first two women I photographed had been an absolute treat. Both being very different from one another looked at fashion very differently. While I tried to style one, the other knew what she wanted to put on (mostly) and I couldn’t have been more pleased about that Sunday it all happened magically!

I don’t know whether anyone will ever read or appreciate this series but as Aryan was kind enough to lend me his room with white walls along with everything else we might have needed in the process and these wonderful women who willingly (well, almost) agreed to my random ideas which I came up with in the middle of the night, I am happy this journey worked out…

I shall be writing about each with their individual ideas of style, every week from now till there are enough women to bore everybody out. Look out for this series and let me know what you think about it !