View allAll Photos Tagged EarCleaners
Bandra is Mind beyond Space
each nuance has a different phase
racing fast without losing pace
people living harmoniously
beyond caste color race
hope and good living
they embrace ..
no dreams they do not chase
its reality that has to be lived
as always ..an eye of the eagle
wings of prayers
#bandra
#beggarpoet
#firozeshakir
yes moments ,,,we trace
includes polio shots earcleaners illegal fishing bandra talao,..moments in oxymoron haste ..
I was told both the veteran #earcleaners Nabi and Kassim have died due to #Covid in their hometown at #Karnataka .
I for once hope it is false news I pray for their well-being.
They were both farmers came to #Mumbai 40 years back as earcleaners at #BandraTalao
Miss them.
Kassim Bhai was a a migrant a farmer in Yadgir Karnataka but inorder supplement his income he came to Mumbai with his brother Nabi learnt the art of ear wax removal and worked at Bandra Talao.
One of their colleagues Raju earcleaner was known to he used to clean ears at Bazar Road .
Raju too was from their hometown a Hindu but had learnt his art from his Guru late Chand Hussain a Muslim .
Raju stayed at Mahim and Nabi and Kassim lived at Bandra East .
I began documenting their art their work a few years back when they were going to be evicted from Bandra Talao a pond with walking space ..they would visit my house on Eid I would serve them sweet kheer and chicken biryani give them baksheesh or Eidi .
I made them famous through my earcleaning videos as I had no one to shoot me I shot them cleaning my ears on mobile selfie mode .
Kassim got Covid he died in Mumbai and during lockdown their activity stopped .
All of them disappeared but another migrant from UP learnt their art and through trial error was cleaning ears he too disappeared .
Chand Hussain died in mysterious circumstances near the railway tracks they traced him through my videos .
Nabi had returned when the lockdown was eased but I have not seen him almost 3 months .
The Bandra Talao is close to my house by ricksha but I have not gone there ..
So this is the story of Kassim Ear Cleaner farmer who died in the city of his dreams Mumbai .
www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLhcBCK29bxqsAFoDaro2Jv-lJ1...
Just across my house is a road that is called Lalmitti Bandra Reclamation ..working place of migrant barbers from UP and Bihar ..open space against a wall ,
I began shooting them when I moved to Bandra Reclamation in 2007 they are close to the bus stop that takes people to Mahim Dadar and beyond or town.
Bandra is a famous prominent suburb of Mumbai close to the sea .
Barbers are as mentioned earlier migrants eking out a living in our city mostly one finds Muslim barbers in lanes of Bandra ,, the rich ones have their salons big or small.
I am fascinated with hands ..hands that perform and add to creativity street artists masseurs carpenters tailors etc my farther was the first tailor master in his family ..his family were vinegar merchants in Subatiya baugh Lucknow,
I started shooting earcleaners polshers of brass items we call kalaiwalas,cobblers ,
But back to barbers I have shot barbers religious tonsure at Sufi festivals at the Kumbh Melas ...I have not shot the Bandra barbers since a long time now but I know most of them..
I have as yet never shot a woman barber this is more of a male domain at the street level.
A professional roving ear-cleaner in Wadi Bunder, Bombay.
See more on this intriguing profession over at Random Specific.
For many years I documented the #Earcleaners in #Bandra .They were #migrants disappeared due to #lockdown #pandemic I was told #Nabi and #Kassim are dead Raju is not traceable he used to live in #Mahim .
I am now working on my archives old videos of #earwaxremovers t.co/sZp5jUHI2U
Mustakim the new #earcleaner at #BandraTalao
Mustakim came for treatment from Bijnore got stranded in Mumbai due to the lockdown .
He found shelter at Bandra Talao he made this public pond his home hoping to return once the lockdown got over .
But he was not recovering he had to sustain himself though people cared for him.
He bought the instruments of the earcleaners and learnt the art of wax removal through trial and error and makes enough money to take care of himself .
The original earcleaners Nabi and Kassim he heard both have passed away due to Covid for once I hope it is false news .Raju too has disappeared I am scared to get my ears cleaned but I took this shot as a memory Mustakim pretending to clean my ears .
I.paid him all the same .
I miss the earvleaners my old friends at Bandra Talao .
#rajuearcleaner
#earcleaners
#firozeshakir
visited the earcleaners today at Bandra Talao after almost 3 months have not been keeping well
my latest video
Ear cleaner at work. I have to say that in many visits to India I have never been tempted to have one of these guys remove my real (or imaginary) ear wax.
Ear Cleaning - Colaba, Mumbai, India
Available to Licence from Shutterstock follow link from www.malcchapman.com/Malc_C_Photography/Shutterstock.html
MUMBAI, INDIA - MARCH 13: Unidentified men, an ear cleaner at work on a hotel employee on a street corner on March 13, 2010 in Mumbai (Bombay), India. Hygiene is of great importance in India.
© All rights reserved - This photograph is copyright protected. Please do not add to blog sites, reproduce, publish, print, use on the internet or for other purpose without my permission.
I am a #YouTuber
Please like subscribe to my channel of Peace And Interfaith
Sufism
Shiasm
Hinduism
Aghoris
Kumbh Melas
Tantrics
Hijras
Eunuch Children
Various Urus Sufi Orders
Streetphotography
EarCleaners
Tennis
Chadiyan
AjmerSharif
AghoriHoli
Khamakhya
Makanpur
Nizamuddin
Siddis
Warsis
QadriRafaees
Rafaees
Makhdhoom Shah Baba
Fakhruddin Shah Baba
Haji Malang
Pride
Crossdressers
Mumbai Bagh
LalbaughChyaRaja
GSB KingCircle
Residency Lucknow
Moharam Chennai Mumbai Delhi Jaorah Kolkatta Lucknow Delhi
Haji Abdur Rehman Shah Baba Dongri
Alibaugh Bullockcart Race
Murud Janjira Bullockcar Race
Bollywood
Christian Ethos
Crosses of Bandra
EastIndianethos
Dabbawalas
DanceofDemocracy
Durga Visarjan.
Ganesh Visarjan
Gudi Padwa
Holi Versova
www.youtube.com/c/FirozeShakir
Over 6700 videos
90.5 k subscribers
35 million views.
I have known Raju since many years he used to clean ears near my old workspace at Abbas Compound 29 Road and today he wonders why I don't wear the crazy dresses I wore those days one white shoe one black shoe turban rings and silver sticks .
Raju came to Mumbai from Gulbarga Karnataka when he was 19 year old he worked as a helper in the construction field ..but he was not happy so he picked up the ear cleaning trade and he is a Hindu who is a follower of Haji Malang Baba .
He works at the Bandra Talao with two Muslim colleague s from his native town Nabi and Qasim who are now in their village for Qasims daughters marriage .
Raju stays on rent with his family at Mahim I come and sit with him listen to his stories of the Bandra Talao which in the old days was patronized by masseurs and a homosexual pick up joint ..there were a few prostitutes who did business in the nights .
Some thieves operated here as masseurs and would rip rich drunk guys who came for massage robbing them of their wallets and gold chains .
A lot of people came to the Talao to commit suicide he tells me and he is full of stories .
I did not get my ears cleaned today I took these two shots to tell this story...and mind you though I did not clean my ears I paid him.
I shot a few videos too..
One thing he did tell me those rich guys who come in cars to feed the pigeons will not give a rupee to a poor hungry child .
This was shot by Murtuza SM Hadi a photographer too at Badi Bargah while shooting 8 Moharam..with Boaz and Francois,, both my Flickr friends and great photographers and documentarists ,,
I learnt a lot from them .. it was an experience shooting with such stalwarts ,,
my new post ,, at Facebook
While I was dabbling in photography I had blinkers on my eyes,, I started my photgraphy with the Film era mostly shooting my stuff on Ilford Delta ASA 100 I had bought the entire stock from Vibgyor Raju Bhai and some of the stock from Standard Photo Store .. for color I used Velvia 50 or Provia , I would take old expired films from Richard Kelep he was kind enough to give them free at Kodak and with the help of maestro BW Jatkar I would experiment and all the labs knew me I shot trigger happily ,, but I shot ,,I knew Mazda Color Art Vishal Bhende ,,Fuji Foto Art ,Huzefer Rassiwala, Mahindra Patil.. and many more places including Bhai Humne who did my printing ,, but sometimes got my rolls developed through friends .
So keeping this traditionalist form of photography I did not succumb or get seduced by the video at all I just did not want to learn to shoot video.. 7 years I would ask people to shoot my granddaughter Marziyas videos ,, I wanted to keep her growing up as a memory but I did not know how to shoot videos at all...so there is just one video of Marziya at my You Tube Channel when she was 3 month old ,, learning to say Dada Dada Dada .meaning Grandpa.
I was inspired to shoot videos and I say this with gratitude watching Fo Paris my friend Francois who had joined me and Boaz Rottem to shoot Ashura Moharam in Hyderabad 2014 ,,, I would watch him taking videos but I was helpless I just shot stills or I would ask someone to take a video on my mobile phone ,,
But once I returned from Hyderabad I decided I will learn shooting video on my mobile and I made mistakes , I did not know the basics I shoot as is where is without ever editing ,, and I shot videos of the Marriammen Feast , but what got me hooked was shooting the Bandra Talao earcleaners , my most viewed videos on You Tube ,, than I earnestly began shooting Garbage and the hapless Municipal Conservancy staff foot soldiers of Modijis Swach Bharat without gloves masks or safety shoes ,, I gradually began shooting stories the flavor of beggary I shot videos at Ajmer Urus .. and today I have over 375 videos over 200000 views ,
I wish I had shot the hijras I documented ,, I wish I had shot the videos of the Bomb blasts that I shot , I wish I had shot my Guru KG Maheshwariji on video.. and so many unfulfilled wishes and I wish I had shot videos of Mr Rajesh Khanna at home , when he played like a grandfather with Marziya and Nerjis ,, he could not do without them .. Bala would call me please bring Marziya ..and both my grandkids have not forgotten Uncle Rajesh Khanna,,I did not take his video when I made his last tuxedo for Balkis Havel fan ad .. I shot his stills when he was trying out his clothes ,, I did not shoot a video of Lal Bagh Chya Raja I shot for years ,, and his march towards the seas ..
I wish I had shot videos of the various possession Hazris , exorcism by the Malangs I visited I wish I had asked someone to shoot my initiation into the Malang fold in 2011 with my Belgian friend ,,
And I am blogging this impromptu at Facebook I will copy and paste to Flickr ,, Now every morning I shoot a garbage video.. I will shoot it till I die standing on my feet ,, near the garbage dump at Bandra Bazar Road I would not mind being buried there near the site of the ladies toilet .. the Bhumi Pujan was done 3 months back by Advocate Ashish Shelar my friendly MLA .. but than it wont be possible as I have decided to gift all the spares in my body to the beggars I shoot I want some beggar kid to see with my eyes , feel the pain of Hussain with my heart .. my brain its fragmented splintered genius ,, lol ..I wish most of all if I could give him my tears ,, the only precious liquid in my armory of this flesh.'
And this is nothing but a tribute to both my friends Boaz who shot the slums , the dhobhi ghat , Moharam in Mumbai .. and we got along pretty well and to Francois I could not accompany him to shoot the Bibi Ka Alm a thought that kills me a million times with guilt ,,
Yes I am shooting amateur videos ...so you can feel what I feel.. and partly see what I could not see..
In your light I learn how to love. In your beauty, how to make poems. You dance inside my chest, where no one sees you, but sometimes I do, and that light becomes this art. ~Rumi,
Pictures sawrm around me like bees
Buzzing to be shot and set free..
Each one vies to be a story..
I take some I leave some humbly
Tell them Sorry..
Beautiful Bandra East with its ugliness
Cardboard structures a unique dichotomy
Or Dadar where Ganesha poses for me
Like a puppet on a string my fate takes me to
The fragrance of aromatic oils herbal medicines all under one roof at Pydhonie
Or watch the earcleaner probing out the dirt from ears in a lone corner at Kalbadevi..
Khichiya Papad a meal that kills my hunger
For just 10 rupees.. In a lane hijras wait to
Be shot by me all in one voice wishing
This Malang a Happy Diwali ..
A few frames shot by the youngest street photographer of Bandra Nerjis Asif Shakir 2 year old my granddaughter who shoots on Canon EOS 60 D .
The rest are stills and 3 old videos I had shot in the past.
posted at Facebook
The shooting happened accidentally ..Nerjis actually came with me to feed the pigeons ,, and this gave her a thrill of her life ,,that she called the pigeons Sharukh Salman Amir should not be held against her ,,she is 2 with the brains of a wit .
And the pigeons responded as she was generous with the grain she gave them.. handfuls ,.what got Nerjis goat and no pun intended was the goats that terrorize the pigeons ,, rushing to eat the grains thrown to them.. and these goats belong to Miya butchers ,..who leave them here to fatten them for slaughter ..
Well she became friends with the ear cleaners and Kassim was her favorite ,, Nabi Raju too .. welcomed her to their world ,,
I shot the ear cleaners and so she too tried her hand shooting them..
After the Bandra Talao the other exciting part of this excursion for her was the Bandra Skywalk .. she loved shooting people sleeping away .. and than me carrying her down the steep iron steps ,, coming down at Lucky Hotel Bandra and we cut through Haji Noora Lane into De Monte Street and via Bandra Bazar too our house ,, and if she gets tired I have to carry her ,,
Now she will be 5 on 17 July she shares her birthday with her father ,,
Though she has already had one Islamic calendar birthday 15 Shaban.
Syed Mehboob cleans ears at Bandstand and Carter Road today New Years Day he came to help Kassim who is alone Raju did not turn up and Nabi has gone to his home town for a religious festival.
I had some work I had to meet a friend I tailor his stuff and so after I finished with him he stays close to the Bandra Talao I walked in to the Talao which is being renovated ..kids were busy fishing a drunk lay on one side taxi drivers gamble here playing cards and there is no security or police presence .
As I came to where the pigeons are fed I spotted Kasim Bhai cleaning a man's ears I began shooting their video ..a few still ..The other ear cleaner Raju had no clients I gave him some money .
And my ear cleaning videos have a large number of people watching them they are my most viewed videos on You Tube total over 507479.views 450 subscribers .
I try to shoot my own ears being cleaned on selfie mode video but I can only do it once a month .
So I clandestinely shoot a guys ears being cleaned without showing his face ..The ear cleaners don't mind they know I am trying to help them as once the Bandra Talao is renovated they will be evicted after working here for 40 years .
And these are my street stories that I video shoot passionately as is where is without editing .
These ear cleaners are actually farmers and when the farm was not doing well they chose this profession to supplement their family's income .
The kids don't want to be ear cleaners they work in the construction field and sadly the new generation does not want to learn their art considering it lowly .
The two Muslim brothers Nabi and Kasim live in a shanty at Bandra East ..The other Raju stays on rent at Dharavi and all three get along well no Hindu Muslim divide here in their profession .
And I like them a lot I felt their story had to be told ..and media talked so much about the unfortunate incident of the Tanzanian lady in Bangalore but no word on the Indian lady that was crushed under the wheels of the Sudanese drivers car .
Media has no time to shoot street stories like this ..I tell my stories through pictures and video..
And than I remember my dad taking me to the Blitz office to meet Mr Rusi Karanjia for a job after I finish school my dad used to tailor Mr Karanjias dapper gray safaris ..and i remember Mr Karanjia telling my dad Master let him learn your trade make him a master cutter like you ..He will be much happier sadly those days I hated tailoring I had learnt cutting under the Spencer Sisters Mereweather road and I opted for styling under late Mrs Jennifer Kapoor at Burlington s the camera came as a straw when I was drowning in a turbulent sea of alcohol.
The writings poems came in 2005 when i got inspired by Biz Stone to blog.
Rest is history.
Raju is a devout Hindu but also a humble devotee of the Holy Saint of Haji Malang near Kalyan .
The moment Raju sees me getting out of my rickshah his eyes sparkle and he gets boastful among the people that are denizens of Bandra Talao ...for him I am an actor and a man who comes to get his ears cleaned at the Bandra Talao.
He has seen the Hindi film I acted in with his children and wife at the cinema hall ..and he lavishes a lot of praise .
He opens up to me and I listen to his chatter as interesting as the pigeons feeding at the Talao .
He is working alone and he missess his seniors Nabi and Kassim who have not returned from their hometown..Kassim went for his daughters wedding and they got delayed .
Raju tells me of the suicides at the pond ..which never make it in the newspapers he tells me of the junkies who create havoc at the pond the local goons who get their ears cleaned free but he takes it all in his stride and he hardly has time to get worked up or complain .
And I once invited him home for lunch he politely refused I than told him I will take him for lunch at Lucky Hotel but he felt embarrassed ..I did not broach the topic further ..
He will always ask about my granddaughter Nerjis ..so these are a few sketches of people that share their humility with me ..and as a photographer what is your actual aim .
A picture or a storytelling moment ..so lurking in the bushes of life are pictures and storytelling moments .
I come here to relax but I also wait to shoot a video ..and it us not easy the person who is getting his ears cleaned can object to my invasion of his privacy ...but of late they seem to enjoy the attention I give them I make them famous too on You Tube .
But it is sad this camaraderie with the earcleaners of Bandra Talao I don't find elsewhere say Fort or DN Road where they sit ..they get angry abusive ..
No pictures that's their first command .
But Raju Nabi Kassim like me and though normally I don't give copies of the pictures I shoot I make an exception to these three humble ear cleaners .
You want to be a good photographer you keep shooting pictures but if you want to tell their stories than you forget the picture taking which is merely a means to no end .
Create a beginning stop blogging start writing your own stories ...don't ever let your mobile phone camera go rusty .
People will read you and they will read you because they are tired of scrolling Amen at the end of people's posts .
They will read you because you break the monotony of people's life with real stories ...stories of your backyard ...
Your story will give them an impetus courage to bravely write their stories too in oxymoron haste .
But you should know when to Stop your story and than the picture gets back it's prominence as a visual ...
Cheers
I don't have normal dinner and I am not fussy about food at all.
I eat mostly whatever is made at home..
I hardly eat at a restaurant..
Breakfast is vegetables chapattis..
Lunch is pulao or light stuff.
If I am at home I drink a few cups of black tea no sugar.
Sometimes I bring a few patice from my friends D Costa Bakery at Bandra Bazar road.
Both brothers Ansar and Ahsan are very good to me..
The heat wave in Mumbai is bad...
Morning I played tennis and walked through the bazar and shot Joe playing the trumpet.
I shot a video.. But what really amazes me and I don't go overboard is my ear cleaning videos.. My new video with Raju earcleaner has garnered over 2k views in 3 days.
And though Bandra Talao where the earcleaners sit is about a 15minutes from my house I hardly go there.
I go there once after 2 months..
I am tired of shooting garbage videos.
So there is nothing in terms of videos to shoot at my backyard.
The ear-cleaners ( ‘kaan maeliye’ or ‘kaan-saaf-wallahs’) are a declining lot. Their profession doesn’t give them respect and enough earnings. Hardly finding any new customers and number of old, regular customers are declining.
The ear-cleaners carry a box that contains some apparatus and ayurvedic oil. Some of them wear red skull cap and are easily identifiable in and around Chandni Chowk.
Their claim “You must try it -it is better than having orgasm!”
DFC Photowalk - November 14, 2010.
Delhi 6
Mehboob Shaikh Ear cleaner Bandra Talao
I am in a Catch 22 situation I started their documentary initially to shoot their videos show their plight to the local authorities a few years back as they have done their business here for last 40 years and were being evicted from this pond that was being refurbished .
The videos helped that were allowed to stay ,,this is the only silver lining in disguise .
I am close to the earcleaners everything I come here I bring them chilled mineral water and though one man cleans my ears I pay all 3 of them..I made them famous in the world they made me famous too,
he inquisitively
curiously questioned me
about alex my american friend
who wants both his ears cleaned
for rs 20 surely ,,at bandra talao
that will be refurbished finally
that was once inaugurated by
ms Priya Dutt our ex MP with
a boyishly smiling Ex MLA Baba
Siddiqui..and again re inaugurated
by our brand new Advocate Ashish
Shelar MLA of BJP ...than I wondered
where will the ear cleaners go , the pigeon
feeder the night malishwalas who give
champee ..those gambling dudes waiting
for long bhada away from their taxis ,,
the drug addicts who sleep here shit and pee
the bandra talao wonders to be or not to be
will it really be refurbished lets wait and see
maybe another long wait .. such is progress
that fights with development politically ,,
Swach Bandra ..a long way from Tipperary
And I know a few people might consider this screenshot as showing off , but as a point and shoot DSLR User it s an encouragement to others that Original Content whether shot on the DSLR or the mobile phone will be viewed and you dont have to be envious at not having the best of camera or lenses .
And original content is what most bloggers avoid , they love to use images from the web sometimes even stealing from Flickr members I could never post a picture from the web if I can shoot it , that is why I simply shoot my surroundings , images on my mobile phone when I set out on my morning walks ,,
And there is no method no deliberate composition I have hardly had training in formal photography , my textbook of photography has been all of you I follow on Flickr ,, I may not like airplanes , artistic nudes , nude cyclists , flowers , mountains but once you added me I followed you , I will not add you if you are not a photographer and an empty timeline at Flickr .
I will not add you if you are into porn, genitalia I am not interested in your dirty feet your precocious pictures of semi nude kids ,, fuck I have seen it all .. keep your fetish in your closet ,,
I have one great regret and that is Flickr may have come out with some great tools but when our pictures are stolen by Flickr members the lethargic laid-back approach by Yahoo Copyright is horrendous ... too much paperwork and Flickr should have its own safeguards than the Spaceball tool even a wiz kid can hack.
Most of my hijra pictures even today are on Flickr members timeline and I simply shut my Hijra documentary and my Crossdresser documentary from public view completely ..
I dont and will never use ugly Water Marks on the face of my pictures NEVER ,,People know what I shoot and how I shoot If I scroll a Flickr timeline I can tell you within seconds the name of the photographer .. I know a picture of Akbar Simonese .I know my friend Randalls pictures .I know a Benn Bell I know a Posey even when he hides his face behind a James Joyce book.. And I know a Thomas Hawk.. I could spot it from a mile and no man shoots his wife as beautifully as Mr Hawk.. This is one couple God chose the match in Heaven.
I can spot David Seibolds pictures and we have met recently via Ello.. and there is Alex W and he is still hunting for beggars and earcleaners in LA .
And Meld who adds comments as ornaments to my pictures and Angel and her love for angels and cemeteries ..or Tender with his William Blake symbolism his wavelengths and his surreal images .. So when you see pictures of your 2000 friends on Flickr and say you are not influenced ,I dont believe you , I have unusual creativity Ramcur Rose Rosiehardy Eric Parker ,and so many others I could go on dropping names ,, you have all influenced me to shoot Original Content .. and I thank you all.
I have not shot India I am stuck in Mumbai and I try to discover re discover Mumbai and than I realize I am stuck in Bandra and Bandra keeps re discovering me through its beggars , earcleaners .. barbers .
My hijra documentary is the most exotic I can say it with humility nobody has shot the Hijra with as much compassion than me ,, and this documentary will go with me to my grave.
And I pimp my Flickr timeline via Twitter 1.55 lac tweets , via Tumblr , Blogspot , Ello , Indiblogger and Google+ and it is not photography but as blogs .. photoblogs .
I could never use Flickr as merely a photography showcasing site , pictures must talk and connect and they do need description sometimes ,I am also grateful to those Flickr photographers who came to savor my family's hospitality in the bargain taught my grandchildren a trick or two to shoot I dont want them to end up as point and shoot DSLR users they should learn the art and technique of reading the light from within.. and the kids love it when someone enters our home to shed Light ,, without Light there can be no photography ..
And so a big thanks to all my Flickr friends ,,I am still limping , my leg is bandaged , my walking days at MET Cricket Grounds have ended disastrously ,, and with this limp I took Nerjis to Bandra Talao to shoot pictures last evening.
And I miss my friend Boaz ..and the staff at the Lucky Hotel miss him too.. LOL .
he pushes
his instrument
cleaning tool
in the orifice
sensually
recharging
the acoustics
his tool
like a serpents
tongue
lisps licks
your ear
now becomes
a mound
of pleasure
as it begins
to tick
palpitating
like a horny chick
you your ear
both get
a sexual kick
a tumescent tool
of the ear cleaner
serves almost
like a prick
a picture
i innocently
clicked
my dirty
thoughts
embedded
on sandisk
remixed
i need to go to
psychiatrist
get my head
fixed
I was returning by bus from Santacruz,, and when the bus dropped me at Bandra SV Road I decided to pay a visit to my friends Kassim Bhai Nabi bhai .. earcleaners both brothers have been cleaning wax from the ears for 40 years .
In the early days of their career as earcleaners they used to charge one anna ,,, now they charge Rs 20 but sometimes they are happy if they get Rs 10...business is really bad they were telling me ..between them they had 5 clients ,, so I sat with Nabi to get my ears cleaned and shot two videos ,,
My earcleaner videos are the most viewed on You Tube ,,
I gave both of them 20 bucks each and listened to their tale of rising prices , hardships , they are originally from a farming background , but failure of crop and hard times made them earcleaners like their father a farmer turned earcleaner ,.
Kassim Bhai is the eldest his sons were into farming but now they word as kadia ,, masons at a construction site in Karnataka close to Gulbarga ,, one of their relative takes care of their farm.
The earcleaners will soon be evicted from Bandra Talao their street working space once the Bandra Talao is fully renovated , than they will sit outside on the road and ply their trade ,,, they dont know any other work only proficiently prolifically cleaning out wax from the ears ,,
posted at Facebook first ..
Unlike most of you who post updates without a picture or some GIF or share another persons picture as your update ..I simply cant do it ,does not work for me here at Facebook , so I went to my Flickr archive bought forward a picture changing the Exif data from June 2015 to the current date ,,this post is blank at the moment at Flickr I shall cross blog it from here to Flickr .
In the evening at about 6 pm , I went to Bandra SV road to get bloodworms for my flowerhorns I have some exotic ones about 8...after I bought the worms I decided to go see my ear cleaners friends Nabi , Kassim and Raju..
I was carrying my DSLR too, I met Kassim bhai , he was grumbling business was bad as a guy perhaps a drunkard had drowned at the Talao the pond ..he was fished out by the cops ..and there is no security , kids come and fish here , the BMC cares a fuck.. to put it more aptly ..dead Indians are the best Indians .
Well I decided to bring a smile on Kassim bhais face I sat down to have my ears cleaned and shot the proceedings on my HTC Desire 826 ..I paid both Kassim bhai and Nabi too , Raju the third earcleaner had left home early because of the death of the drunkard at the Talao.
After I had shot the video I said goodbye to them , walked back home on the way near Jain Mandir Road Bandra is a new South Indian joint, they make the best rasam idlis I decided to fill myself ,,and shot a few pictures but I got an urgent call from my client who stays at Orbit Heights Grant Road I was needed urgently before 9pm.. it was 7 pm.. I rushed home showered took a cab not much traffic I reached by 8.30 pm.. I finished my work and walked through the Grant Road vegetable market , nobody recognized me as I was in ordinary attire a white linen shirt and black breeches I bought some vegetables ..and decided to return by train.. the Grant Road station at about 9.30 pm was packed with the homeless folks kids moms and the drunk husbands ,, I had no heart to shoot them and with a plastic bag of 10 kg of vegetables shooting on the mobile phone is not easy.
Well the real adventure began in the train.. I sat in a corner it was a Bandra train no rush.. as such but it was crowded and when the train started a guy began to sing some old numbers I decided to shoot his video, and record his voice ..he was a Muslim dressed neatly in a kurta pajama I gave him money and he moved away back near the entrance ,, there he started another song I carried my heavy bag near the door and began to shoot the second video... and he had pain in his voice he sang passionately of a strange longing that mystically bound me ,, as he was about to finish his second song and Bandra was approaching I talked to him on video.. he was from Hussainabad Lucknow going through very difficult times he loves singing and thus he earned his living I told him I was from Lucknow too..and I felt sad he will go to meet his family in Moharam ..I told him my Lucknow connection , when I got off he had disappeared into the crowds leaving behind a memory that I add to the eve of 69 Independence day ,,without Congress under the auspices of Mr Narendra Modiji...the wait for Acche Din and most of all without sarcasm or satire a genuine hope for Sab Ka Sath Sab Ka Vikas ,,
Dal Dal Par Soneki Chidiya Karti Hain Basera Yeh Bharat Desh Hai Mera ,,
I will upload the videos of this Lucknow singer from Hussainabad but the pictures on my DSLR can wait ,,
I use Facebook as a blog platform.. and I pimp the soul of my blog on Twitter ..
posted at FB
I used to call her Malang when she was born .
She was most of all excited by my camera more than my turban beads rings.. So I decided to teach her photography when she was barely 18 month old. on my Canon 60 D later Canon 7 D with vertical grip.
She loved colors so at a very young age I let her dabble with water colors.
She will be 7 on 17 July her birthday that she shares with her father.
Once I took her out to shoot the streets beggars earcleaners but now she has no time.
She is one smart kid and baffles me with her wit and intelligence.
She offers water to everyone who comes to our house.. Water that forms the very essence of my faith and my blood and tears.
My greatest tribute to hands working hands emotional hands is my documentary on street barbers.
The largest gathering of barbers on a single day and bald heads religious tonsure is at #PitruPaksha #Banganga.
I shoot them with dedication and intense passion.. Next documentary that made me famous on the internet is #EarCleaners of #BandraTalao
I have documented Nabi Mehboob Raju Kassim and late Chand Hussain ear cleaners
These are my most viewed videos on my YouTube channel.
Than I shot Kalaiwalas of Bandra and the use of their hands in polishing brass vessels.
Next the wood carvers of Bandra SV Road I love their workmanship and art.
The clapping hands of the beggar hijras in trains and traffic signals.
Beggars with outstretched hands.
Hands or stumps of Maria the leper Lady who begs around Bandra.
The hands of the tailor masters and their workers.
Embroiders.
I shot the hands that do Matam during Moharam hands that flagellate do Kamazani on Ashura Chehlum.
Hands of great artists like @ranjitdahiya painting the weeping walls of #ChapelRoadBandra and giving his precious time to add the same creativity to my granddaughter @NerjisAsifShakir.
She is his favourite 8 year old disciple.
For 5 long years I shot the hands of my tennis coach @MrSurendraPawar teaching tennis to 3 year olds and senior citizens like me.
As a photographer you have to pick up a subject document it. And continue telling stories through visuals.
Koli women at Bandra Bazar fish market carving slicing fish.
The dambarwalas during rains the hands of the Dabbawalas and the hands folded in prayers.
The hands of the photographer.. Holding the camera the right way is the essence of photography till the camera becomes an extension of the hands.
Hands of the tattoo artist this documentary I began with Als Tattoo studio many years back at Bandra Hill road.
The humble hands of carpenters masons and the hands of the migrants from Jharkand washing rickshahs at Linking Road for Rs 20.
I shot prolificaly tender hands of the child masseur at Ajmer massaging the rich hijras that get their salvation from these young Souls.