photo workshop with kids

6th november2005 is a very special date for me and all of us.
not only it is the birthday of my little daughter Sanchi, but this day we began a mission of the
life time- sharing our understanding of the world to the future generation- through photography.

as in any work we all need time , money, effort, dedication, passion to keep going.
and i wish to thank you for giving the time and effort for it so let us keep going.
learning and sharing the knowledge.

Sounder, Atul, Neeraj, Sudharak, Mamata, Santosh...& Ravi shekhar...

the workshop began at 10 am in the morning.
Sounder started it with playfullness. we all started plaing differnt games with him and this made kids
much relaxed. the kids who came for the workshop were 11- to 15 years of age. Sounder started working to destroy the gender barriers and soon kids were playing comfortably. then Sounder started the memory game so we can learn the names of each other.
as per time table Sounder gave the charge to Ravi and left.
we all sat in the conference room of the patrkar sangh and Ravi took the seat.
Ravi started the talk in a question -answer form so that the kids were comfortable and involve in the process. he talked about the process of being alert and aware. he also talked about the simple process of breathing to collect the attaintation.
It is a importance of alertness makes a person a better photographer.
technical part of the photography is much simple, he said, but it takes years to cultivate the personal visual language. with growth of digital photography, with mastering the seeing it self can make you a master photographer.

later, Atul Loke, the staff photographer of the weekly magazine- OUTLOOK showed them his pictures
of Sunami and Mumbai Chawl project.
at first, children saw the Sunami pictures and were shocked with the images of dead bodies. then Atul shared his journey of NAPATTANAM village. there he spend two days walk around for two days just on biscuits and water. witnessing human tragdey. After knowing the story behind the images the kids
started relating with the images in a differnt way.
the next photo presentation by Atul was his ongoing project of the Mumbai chawl where he was born and stayed till he got married. his parents are still staying there. All the participants were used to stay
in chawl near Mumbai central. they were enjoying the images they could relate with them easily.

Neearj Priydarsi, the photo editor of the Indian express, has bought the off beat images of the daily life.
boxing, monkey playing with puppy, Amitabh Bachhan, Abhisek Bachhan, Arun Gavali images thrilled them as they could talked to the person who has the opprtunity to meet these people and click them in person.
after the lunch break Ravi started talking on the image and imagination.
he conduted a small session of guided imagination meditation and kids could enjoy the process.
the came the process of training them for the shoot.
agfa has given disposable cameras so that kids can go shoot on there own. Atul, Sudharak, Neeraj and Ravi guided about how to hold camera. each child took the camera in hand and strted looking through viewfinder. afterwards the venue of the workshop was shifted to the outdoor, where the lighting conditions were better for the small box cameras.these photographers started clicking photos to understand the working of the equipment.
then we all went back to room. Mamata distributed the camera. each one of the participents were delighted with the days experience. we sat in a group and the participents were encouraged to share there feelings.
this was a happening day for all of us.

creativity

BECOME A CHILD AGAIN and you will be creative.
All children are creative. Creativity needs freedom --
freedom from the mind, freedom from knowledge, freedom
from prejudices.
A creative person is one who can try
the new.
A creative person is not a robot. Robots are
never creative, they are repetitive. So become a child
again.

And you will be surprised that all children are
creative -- all children, wherever they are born, are
creative. But we don't allow their creativity, we
crush and kill their creativity, we jump upon them. We
start teaching them the right way to do things.

Remember, a creative person always goes on trying the
wrong ways. If you always follow the right way to do a
thing you will never be creative -- because the right
way means the way discovered by others. And the right
way means that of course you will be able to make
something, you will become a producer, a manufacturer,
you will be a technician, but you will not be a
creator.

What is the difference between a producer and a
creator? A producer knows the right way of doing a
thing, the most economical way of doing a thing; with
the least effort he can create more results. He is a
producer. A creator fools around. He does not know
what is the right way to do a thing so he goes on
seeking and searching again and again in different
directions. Many times he moves in a wrong direction
-- but wherever he moves, he learns. He becomes more
and more rich. He does something that nobody has ever
done before. If he had followed the right way to do
things he would not have been able to do it.

Listen to this small story....

A Sunday school teacher asked her students to draw a
picture of the Holy Family. After the pictures were
brought to her, she saw that some of the youngsters
had drawn the conventional pictures -- the Holy Family
in the manger, the Holy Family riding on the mule, and
the like.
But she called up one little boy to ask him to explain
his drawing, which showed an airplane with four heads
sticking out of the plane windows.
She said, "I can understand why you drew three of the
heads to show Joseph, Mary, and Jesus. But who's the
fourth head?"
"Oh," answered the boy, "that's Pontius the Pilot!"


Now this is beautiful! This is what creativity is. He
has discovered something. But only children can do
that. You will be afraid to do it, afraid you will
look foolish.

A creator has to be able to look foolish. A creator
has to risk his so-called respectability. Only those
who are ready to put their prestige, their pride,
their respectability at stake again and again, and can
go on into something which nobody thinks is worth
going into.... Creators are always thought to be mad
people. The world recognizes them, but very late. It
goes on thinking that something is wrong. Creators are
eccentric people.


'Creativity' By Osho

Naseerudeen Shah

4th August2006, NCPA, Mumbai, India
I am sitting on the staircase of the experimental theatre inside the National Council of Performing Arts situated on the tip of Narman Point. I have come here to see the show of the English play – ‘DEAR LIAR’
I am not a audience of English theater. I am a hard core fan of the genius actor- Naseeruddin Shah.
I am sitting on the stairs of the experimental theater with my friend Sonal.
Sonal is leaving for Coimbtore next week, leaving Mumbai for some time.
She keeps repeating- ‘but one day I will come back’.
Sea wind is crazy. Mumbai monsoon takes a little break in between. Climate is wet. And we are talking about longevity.
We normally do not expect to live very long. The way we are living our life- we know that- life span is 50 to 60 years of active life. Then we grow old and wait to die.
Out of the context I quote-
‘one of the most remarkable cases of longevity to spill over into the 20th century is that of the Chinese herbalist and Taoist adept LEE CHING-YUEN, who maintained his youthful vigor, sexual potency and perfect health through out long active life. Lee died in 1933, shortly after marrying his 24th wife, and it remains a matter of historical record in china that he was born in 1677, during the early year of Ching Dynasty. That made him 256 years old when he died, for those who wish to count the years. Lee died with all his own teeth and hair, and those who knew him say that he looked about 50 when he was already over 200.’
-‘The Tao of Health, Sex and Longevity’ by Daniel Reid (page-348).
As I am talking, I see a car coming closer to the stairs an a lady in late 60’s opens the rear door with a show ticket ready in her hand. I share a glance and -smile with Sonal. I am looking towards the entrance where a black board is hanging behind the glass- ‘HOUSE FULL-THNAK YOU’.
I see a fat man coming near the board and lifts it and hangs it back showing the reverse side of it, which is blank. Now I see him opening one of the glass doors and sitting behind a table. I walk to the man.
Now I have the ticket. Sonal is going back to hostel to concentrate on her studies. And I am heading towards the ever group of the audience.
I am walking to the experimental theater auditorium. This crowd is different.
These are not the people, who share my Mumbai in day-to-day basis. They live in South Bombay, probably never use local trains for commuting.
Ticket rates for the show is flat two hundred rupees.
Everybody wants secure for a better seat. I am glad to grab a seat in the second row. Slowly audience is coming inside and taking whatever seats are available. I notice their sorry figures when they are indicated to seat in the last rows of the auditorium.
I am also seeing the stage without curtains. There is a small table on the center stage with two chairs facing the audience and two separate chairs on the left and right side of the stage slightly behind the line of center stage.
Two huge black and white portraits of a male and female are hanging in the back drop with a large white frame.
As the third bell rings some where outside the auditorium, music of western classical orchestra fills the hall and the darkness creeps all over. Sound grow higher and the light flashes around the two portraits, a beam flashes on all the chairs. Volume is going higher with the interruption of mobile ring tones.
Thank you for switching off your mobile phones- says a voice, we know as
Naseruddin Shah.
I first met Naseer at CCI in 1989.
I reached churchgate station in morning to keep my 5.30am appointment with him. I was to shoot his photographs along with Shekhar Kapoor. They came there for morning exercises. I had the breakfast with them and the photographs published in Sunday Mid-Day.
As a fan I have never missed any of his interview. I always found him a man of substance. He has been consistent in his work. Fully dedicated to the quality you expect from a top grade performer.
I watched him growing with the boom of parallel cinema movement. He was the supper star of those films- ‘Nishant’, ‘Manthan’,‘Bhoomika’, ‘Akrosh’.
He won a national award for ‘Sparsh’ playing the blind teacher.
I am ready to witness the play
‘DEAR LIAR’.
directed by Naseer himself.
He is also playing the lead role with the leading lady of his life, wife and actress Ratna Pathak Shah.
Naseer walks on the stage with Ratna.

‘I am Naseeruddin Shah.
I am Ratana Pathak Shah.

This play is based on the letters of Geroge Benard Shaw written to Stalla an actress in England. The period is early ninth century.’

And now on, I will not be able write the details of the play.
I am sitting mesmerized by the performance of the two. I am overbold with the British English boiling out from both. There nuances, and the in between expressions give the a very high level of their acting ability
Naseer starts the character with age of 56 and takes it to age of 80. He changes the body language to change the age and I am thrilled. The play is more than two hours.
Its for my love for this dedicated actor that I am writing these line.
In age of sms, mobile, mms and internet, when the success is measured by the numbers and market,
I wish to salute the couple-
for their dedication to what they enjoy-acting.

Now I am going to watch-
Yun Hota to Kya Hota