Shyam. Samuel. Pandiyan.

I was stopped by this man, spoken to and asked to click his portrait, which I was happy to oblige.

And I think he made for a very good subject and the portrait came out pretty well - cos he's got a great smile and the shock of hair adds to a very 70s Indian look.

 

This is Samuel Pandiyan.

He doesnt like how he looks, accepts he has a good smile, but thinks he looks like - wait for it - a terrorist!! (his words, not mine) He wouldnt accept when I said it just wasnt so!

Sam or Shyam(as he pronounced it) is a polyglot, and for a tamilian from the streets speaks pretty decent Hindi. He told me about the Madivala lake in the background and the birds(feathered kind) I could spot there - birds that migrate from abroad and are big-winged in nature, kingfishers etc., Kingfisher was the one bird he could identify really well. How? From the image on the beer bottle! :)

 

I think the opportunity to take these snaps is one of the highlights of doing street photography.

 

This picture is #4 in my 100 strangers project. Find out more about the project and see pictures taken by other photographers at the 100 Strangers Flickr Group page

 

f 8, 1/250s on a Nikkor 50mm f1.4 AIS lens

Done