First Lady of Bhanker

© K. L. Kamat

Patel's Wife, Village of Bhanker
Bastar District, Madhya Pradesh, 1976
The photograph is hand-colored by Kamat

The village head of Bhanker welcomed me in all warmth and offered me tea in a leaf cup. Although his wife was fearful of the camera, she was very curious. She eavesdropped on our conversation while standing on one foot and resting her head on her palm. I could not have asked for a better pose. Every time I raised the cup in the pretext of organizing myself,  I secretly took a  picture. Due to the poor quality of film and chemicals I was using (the scholarship barely covered my traveling expenses), the quality of pictures did not do justice to some of my efforts, yet I have the satisfaction of trying very hard to photograph the tribals of Bastar.

-K.L.Kamat in The Timeless Theater CD-ROM

See Also:

• Children of the Forest God -- Learn about the little known, but very rich traditions and cultures of the tribals of India