Before I begin, I was in India for a week, only giving me enough time to visit New Delhi and Agra. 

 

It’s extremely hard to capture such a large country in seven days. In fact, this project shouldn’t be called India; it should be called New Delhi. However I thought these photos represented India as a whole extremely well. Here are the souls I captured.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

“Mahesh, the pepper man!” I got many weird faces walking through the pepper market in Old Delhi, However Mahesh saw my camera and automatically grabbed my attention. He took a photo with my mom, and then posed for his solo shot. You can see the giant sacs filled with peppers. Now imagine hundreds of those stores in a small and dirty atmosphere. You can imagine the smell and the sting in your eyes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

These three photos are all of different men I met.

To the left, is an expert in creating one of a kind Indian plates. Done all by hand, one plate takes around a month to complete and goes for $150-$200, Definitely not enough to feed your family.

In the middle, is a Sikh Volunteer whom I ran into during my visit at the Gurudwara Bangla Sahib temple. Here, Volunteers prepare meals for thousands of Hungry homeless people on a daily basis. On the menu, Naan bread, an Indian tradition.

On the right is a man whom I ran into on the street in Agra. Him and his horse were carrying a “mobile praying station” fitted with all of the Hindu Deities.

 

To this day, it baffles me the photos I capture of people whom have no idea I’m taking a photo. Although they may be looking at the camera, it doesn’t necessarily mean I asked them to pose.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The last three photos from the series are of Shiba my guide, his wife Mita, and they’re daughter Jasmine. This day, each one of them taught me an important lesson.

 

Shiba taught me that before you serve yourself another drink, whomever you’re drinking with must finish theirs as well. Also, if you open a bottle to drink amongst people, even if it’s just two, you must finish the entire bottle. You can imagine how we ended up.

 

Mita taught me what real Indian gastronomy is like. She somehow managed to pull off a five-course meal in a four by four kitchen for 12 people. If there is any leader in that household, it’s her.

 

Jasmine taught me how to defend myself during times of war. By war I mean water balloon fights. It’s tradition to have water balloon fights amongst friends and neighbors from rooftop to rooftop. Jasmine is a pro at preparing the perfect Water balloon.