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k a a l a r a n g a Indian Paintings
History of India

Women of India

Faces of India

g e o g r a p h i c a - i n d i c a Temples of India
Arts of India
Natives of India
Indian Mythologies


Pictures of Old Mysore DasaraDurable Link to this BLOG
The walls of Mysore Royal Palace, contain beautiful paintings of the festivities as celebrated during the rule of Mysore Maharajas. One can fathom the old glory of Mysore Dasara, due to the life-like depcitions.

© K. L. Kamat
Chariot Procession of Chamundi Goddess
Chariot Procession

© K. L. Kamat
Citizens Gathered for Dasara Procession
Citizens of Mysore Gathered to Witness Dasara Procession

© K. L. Kamat
Palanquin Procession
The Palanquin procession

© K. L. Kamat
Elephant Pulled Car
Elephant Pulled Car
Important Office-bearers of the Court following the Procession

© K. L. Kamat
Attire of Noblemen of Mysore
Eminent Citizens Witnessing Dasara
Many leaders can indeed be identified from these paintings

© K. L. Kamat
Horse-mounted Officials
Horse Mounted Officials
The Mysore Dasara was culmination of a months of work by the beaurocrats to put a a fantastic celebration.

At the Mysore Dasara
A View of Dasara Procession
Notice the parading soldiers and the candy vendor chasing flies with a stick.

© K. L. Kamat
Parade of Soldiers
The Parade of Jawans

© K. L. Kamat
The Elephant Mounted King
Maharaja on the Royal Elephant
For the wards of the kingdom, an view of the ruler was the climax of their festivities.

See Also:
• The Elephants of Mysore Dasara

First Created: Thursday, September 28, 2006
Last Updated: 9/28/2006 4:13:01 PM


India's Lost Professions -IDurable Link to this BLOG
Kaligars or vessel-shiners were once a common sight on the streets of India. They made a living by establishing kilns by roadsides and applying a fresh shiny coat of metal over old and stained vessels.

After the arrival of stainless steel, and aluminium, the cooking vessels made out of lead and tin fell out of favor, due to their weight, and high maintenance.

The Kalaigar community, who used to inherit their profession, lost their means of livelihood and had to take to other minial jobs.

Here are two photographs to remember a lost profession of India.

© K. L. Kamat
Roadside Kalaigar (Dish Polisher)

Corel Professional Photo
Blacksmiths working, Jaipur

See Also:
• Real Jobs - Photographic Exhibition of Hard Labor

First Created: Friday, September 15, 2006
Last Updated: 9/20/2006 7:34:09 AM


The Color YellowDurable Link to this BLOG
Following is a collection of pictures depicting the role and use of color yellow in Indian culture.

Golden Oil Lamps (<i>diyas</i>)
Yellow Metal
Golden Oil Lamps from India

Deep Fried Vegetarian Snacks
Crispy and Tasty Yellow
Deep fried food with chickpea base is very popular in India.

Picturesue Sand Dunes, Rajasthan
Yellow Dessert
Picture of Sand Dunes in Rajasthan

The Yellow Fruit
The Yellow Fruit

A Ripe Mango
The Other Yellow Fruit

Illustrated Palm Leaf Text
Yellowed Treasures of India
Illustrated Palm Leaf Text, Saraswati Museum, Tanjore

Jayachamarajendra Wodeyar (1919-1974)
Yellow for Richness
Painting of a Indian prince in shiny golden clothing

See Also:
• The Color Red
• The Color Green

First Created: Sunday, February 19, 2006
Last Updated: 2/19/2006 5:56:53 PM


Stories the Torn Shirts TellDurable Link to this BLOG
Stories the Torn Shirts Tell

Today let us look at pictures featuring torn shirts and the stories they tell.

© K. L. Kamat
How many torn shirts does it take to make one torn shirt?
How many torn shirts does it take to make one torn shirt?

This amazing photograph of a mystic shows a shirt that is in fact stitched from numerous torn shirts. Known as Gudadasais, the mystics live a life of chosen poverty.

K.L.Kamat
Gond boy with Torn Shirt
Photograph of a boy belonging to the Gond tribe. The shirt is torn in either directions. But don't you miss the sparkle on his face.

© K. L. Kamat
A Weaver at Sriniketan Campus
Cloth maker affords no shirt!
Torn shirt of a weaver at Sriniketan. A very ironical photograph. Don't you think?

© K. L. Kamat
African Indian Boy in Torn Shirt
African Indian Boy in Torn Shirt

© K. L. Kamat
Torn Shirt of a Siddi Boy
Torn Shirt of a Siddi Boy

And the photographer Kamat himself in a torn under-shirt.

Kamat at his Residence
Lived in Underwear, Died in Underwear
Throughout his life, Kamat lived a life of extreme simplicity.

Kamat loved his old underwear; the older the better. He wore the long, custom stitched Indian boxers made from Binny's blue casement cotton, and thick cotton banians. They were modest, and that's what he wore at home all the time, and refused to wear presentable clothing even when he had visitors; that's perhaps his most enduring image. One of his sisters thought it was befitting that Kamat even died in them. The photograph shows Kamat in a torn undershirt.

First Created: Tuesday, October 19, 2004
Last Updated: 12/27/2005 11:32:31 AM


Mother's DayDurable Link to this BLOG
© K. L. Kamat
Halakki Tribal Woman and Her Child
Happy Mother's Day!

Photograph taken in 1987 of a mother belonging to Halakki tribal community.

See Also:

• Mother and Child: Pictorial Exhibition
• Halakki Farmers of Indian West Coast

First Created: Wednesday, May 05, 2004
Last Updated: 5/5/2004 4:28:48 PM


The Mirror ProjectDurable Link to this BLOG
Mirrors inspire us in ways few others do.

Here's an exhibition of pictures from our archive depicting use of mirrors.

© K. L. Kamat
Ancient Mirrors from India
Ancient Mirrors from India

© K. L. Kamat
Man using a broken mirror to shave
Man using a broken mirror to shave

© K. L. Kamat
A damsel admires herself in a mirror
A damsel admires herself in a mirror

© K. L. Kamat
A Groom Getting Ready for His Wedding
A Groom Getting Ready for His Wedding

© K. L. Kamat
Sharing  of the Mirror
Sharing of the Mirror
Three sisters getting ready simultaneouly by sharing a mirror

Internet Link:
• The Mirror Project - adventures in reflective surfaces.

First Created: Tuesday, August 26, 2003
Last Updated: 8/26/2003


Same Picture, Multiple ViewsDurable Link to this BLOG
Here's a pictorial primer for the archaeologist in you.

© K. L. Kamat
Dilapitated Sculpture
For the unitiated, this is just another of the decaying stone sculpture somewhere in India..

© K. L. Kamat
A Young Woman Ponders at the `Wheel-Barrow` Lovemaking of the Dogs
The photographic subject is scrubbed with dry coconut-fibers, and cleaned with water by Kamats and photographed. Details such as the mating dogs, become visible!

© K. L. Kamat
"I read and I forgot… I saw and I understood"
Material hand-touched and enchanced by photographer for publication in academic journal. Especially notice how the photographer was able to bring out the parrot in the window the artist has depicted, which was hardly visible at the first instance.

Points to Ponder: What's the girl thinking? Since this sculpture is found in a public place, do you think it was part of ancient sex-education system? Why the parrot in the window? What kind of furniture is she sitting on?

See Also:
• The Sculptures of India
• Indian Archaeology
• Read a Story-behind-the-story about these photographs in Kamat Greenroom

First Created: Thursday, May 15, 2003
Last Updated: 5/15/2003


Four Newly Discovered Tribal PicturesDurable Link to this BLOG
The following are some of the newly discovered pictures depicting tribals of Madhya Pradesh. Pictures hand-colored by K.L.Kamat.

Do notice how the tribals have used inexpensive metals, flowers, and feathers in decorating their attire. Pictures taken in the forests of Central India, 1976-77.

© K. L. Kamat
Headgear Decorated with Flowers & Feathers

© K. L. Kamat
Tattoos of a Tribal Woman

© K. L. Kamat
Headgear Decorated with Flowers & Feathers

© K. L. Kamat
Tribal Girl of Bastar

See Related Contents:
• The Tribes of Madhya Pradesh
• The Tribals of India
• Kamat's Multiple Talents - Kamat the All-rounder

First Created: Thursday, April 10, 2003
Last Updated: 4/10/2003


Cricket of the CommonersDurable Link to this BLOG
To mark the 2003 Cricket World Cup currently underway in Africa, we present Cricket of the Common Folk in India.

© K. L. Kamat
Brahmins at a Game of Cricket
Brahmins at a Game of Cricket

© K. L. Kamat

Cricket in front of Crawford Hall, Mysore

© K. L. Kamat
"I intend to hit only boundaries and sixers."
"I intend to hit only boundaries and sixers."

See Also:
• Cricket Team

First Created: Thursday, March 13, 2003
Last Updated: 3/13/2003


Alternate Positions for Child DeliveryDurable Link to this BLOG
While we consider birth of a child is one of the most beautiful subjects, rarely we see the event captured in works of art.

In today's entry, we present two alternate positions of child delivery depicted by Indian artists in sculptures.

The first one is from a Vijayanagar period temple in the town of Bhatkal, where the woman is squatting. The second is from the town of Nanjanagud, where the woman is standing up. Several midwives are shown assisting the woman.

© K. L. Kamat
Birth of a child – the natural culmination of sexual activity
The Squatting Position
Apprx. 15th Century

© K. L. Kamat
Woman Delivers while Standing Up
Woman Delivers while Standing Up
Apprx. 18th Century

First Created: Sunday, March 02, 2003
Last Updated: 3/2/2003

 

The Aperture Photo Blog

Introduction
PhotoBlog Archives

 

Pictures
Artist Dressing up as a Woman In the Yakshagana Greenroom…Man putting on a sareeFour Panels of the Dodda-maluru Hero-stoneMasked Man Belonging to Muria Tribe
The Animal Chain and the Wondering Sadhu Waiting for the Bus Curled-up WormAnything that Reflects...The Mirror Project
A Contended Konkani HousewifeLong Time before Adobe Photoshop, There was Kodak OpaqueBurning lamp design for DeepavaliVision of Krishnas TotalityPatels Wife, Village of Bhanker
Woman Delivers while Standing UpHomeward BoundObscure Erotica

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