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Sahapedia Frames Photography Grant 2018

We have our final 23 Grantees for the first edition of the Sahapedia Frames Photography Grants! We are truly overwhelmed by the enthusiastic participation and the quality of applications received. Our final Grantees were selected from over 300 applications, and it was not an easy task. What set them apart were their unusual subjects, unique perspectives, and of course, their skill as a photographer. Those of you who do not find yourselves on this list, there is a lot more to come for you - so follow us for updates and stay connected!

Here, in brief, are the projects the 23 Grantees worked on and link to their published photoessay on Sahapedia. Do check out their work which they have created with much hard work and in-depth research:

Abhijit Chakraborty

Abhijit Chakraborty travelled to Purulia to document the dancer community known as ‘nachni’. Nachnis and their rasiks (male handlers) together perform jhumur song and dance in villages. Modern nachnis have evolved from the older baiji and tawaif culture of 18th and 19th century India. Abhijit captures the family life of nachnis, who are treated as outcasts in the society, and looks at how social entertainment is an important cultural element in rural Bengal.

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Arindam Thokder

Arindam Thokder was fascinated by film posters and large cut outs installed at political rallies and outside cinema halls in Bangalore. He visited the studio of K. Chinnappa, a veteran in film poster painting for six decades now, who is possibly the last poster painter in the city. Arindam also documented the few remaining artists who make hand-painted stickers of movie stars which are displayed on autorickshaws.

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Arka Dutta

Arka Dutta worked on the bahurupis of Birbhum district, West Bengal. Bahurupis are impersonators who dress up as Hindu gods and goddesses and travel from village to village to collect alms from households. They also perform for live audiences at local festivals and fairs. Arka documented the elaborate process of their physical transformation, their daily travel through the countryside, their living spaces, and how they engage in various acts to entertain their audiences.

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Deepti Asthana

Deepti Asthana visited Kargil, Jammu and Kashmir, where she stayed with the Balti community. In 1947, the Baltis were partitioned between Kargil in India and Gilgit-Baltistan in Pakistan. Since then, they have been caught in the political conflict between the two countries. Their story is of separation and displacement but also about survival, as the small ethnic group struggles to retain its cultural roots and renew community and family ties across the line-of-control.

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Garima Agarwal

Garima Agarwal was fascinated by the architecture of Mandawa, Nawalgarh and Fatehpur towns, all located in the Shekhawati region in Rajasthan. She photographed the havelis of Shekhawati, not as abandoned spaces, but as living homes that are cherished by their owners, as they carry record of the life of the Marwari community in the 19th century. She also engaged with local artisans to understand the efforts they put to keep the tradition of Shekhawati paintings alive.

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Kanza Fatima

Kanza Fatima documented the embroidery craft of zardozi, produced in the karkhanas (workshops) of Kashmiri Mohalla, Lucknow. Other than the history of the craft, she looked into the techniques, raw materials, workspaces, and creative skill involved in making zardozi and aariwork. She also investigated the living environment of the zardosans (people who make zardozi), how the craft is sold in local markets, and what challenges zardozi work face in modern times due to changes in the market.

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Kirthana Devdas

Kirthana Devdas comes from Pannur, Kerala. Her family practises the ritual of thira, a dance drama that finds roots in the caste dynamics of the Malabar region. Denied access to public spaces of worship, thira is believed to have evolved among lower castes as an alternate space for worship and public conversation. Kirthana documented the spaces, performance and rituals that lead up to thira in the sacred groves of her native place.

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Richa Bhavanam

Richa Bhavanam is aware of the changing dynamics of gender representation in yakshagana, a form of theatre that developed in the Dakshina and Uttara Kannada districts of Karnataka. Till the recent past, yakshagana was performed exclusively by men but it has now opened up to female performers. While the performances themselves are enthralling, Richa went behind the scenes to document the camaraderie among the female performers in the green room, and their transformation into mythical, larger-than-life characters.

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Pradeep KS

Pradeep documented the Daivaradhane festival, which is celebrated in the Tulu Nadu region of the Dakshina Kannada district in Karnataka. Daivaradhane is also known as Bhuta-Kola, where daivas/bhutas (spirits) are invoked by an impersonator in a state of trance. Traditionally, the Pambada, Nalike and Parawa castes celebrate this festival. Pradeep captured the transformation the impersonators undergo by putting on costumes and make-up, and how they bless their devotees and mediate in solving village disputes.

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Sharmishta Dutta

Sharmishta Dutta was enraptured when she first visited Srinagar, and she returned to capture life on the Dal Lake and how local Kashmiris interact with the water body on a daily basis. Sharmishta travelled along the Dal Lake to document the neighbourhoods and the distinct geography of the region. She also explored how the architecture, crafts, agriculture, transportation and economics of the region is directly and indirectly influenced by the intricate ecosystem of wetlands.

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Shatabdi Chakrabarti

Shatabdi Chakrabarti researches on the tattoo culture of various tribal communities in India, and how the ancient practice is slowly fading away and losing its original meaning and significance. As part of her ongoing research, she visited the Baiga community in Maharashtra and documented not only the Baiga women and the process of tattoo making, but also the few remaining artists in the community who keep the art alive.

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