The Vagriyar tribes in South India are an ubiquitous presence – surprisingly so even in a large metropolitan city like Chennai. They lead a marginalized and eccentric lifestyle. They are hard to miss. Around temples they carry their wares and press them into the hands of visitors, hoping to make a sale. They walk around in small groups foraging for things that you and I would have casually thrown away. I remember once insisting on buying a catapult from one of them camped in Adyar. The white wood came from the trees they slept under, the rubber bands slit from strewn bicycle tires. We were told the gypsies kidnapped children, ate parrots for dinner and lived in filth.

N. Prasanna Kumar, a 24-year old award winning photographer has created a body of work documenting the lives of several of these gypsy tribes and in the process breaks some stereotypes.

I met this quiet and somewhat shy photographer with a couple of his friends at the Alliance Francaise in Chennai. Over a cup of hot lemon tea, a favorite of the locals I was told, we exchanged pleasantries and introduced ourselves. We dove into a body of work that Kumar and his friend Syed had somehow cajoled onto their two-wheeler.

The images from the Vagriyar tribes Kumar is following were the best of the lot. One can clearly see the passion for documenting this misunderstood group of people in each of those images. His images prompted me to gush out the name of another wonderful documentarian, a Magnum photographer, who has photographed gypsies in Europe – Josef Koudelka. A straight comparison of the two styles would be grossly unfair but the themes are similar.

Kumar's printing was interesting too. Some images were forcibly printed yellow or red, striking departures from the ordinary. Kumar called them “experiments.” He is a post graduate student at the College of Arts and Crafts and, presumably, has access to all sorts of nifty ideas and influences.

I have invited Prasanna Kumar to display his series on the Vagriyar tribes here on Tiffinbox. So, I do hope you will all get to see them for yourself.

Slow connections on the road, a busy schedule meeting relatives and oh yeah getting married in India all contributed to the trickle of blog posts these last few weeks. But I am back.

New Internationalist magazine displays some fascinating photography. Friend and mentor Shahidul Alam promotes the work of photographers “from the majority world” through his column SOUTHERN EXPOSURE in the magazine. This month, Alam highlights Dominic Sansoni from Sri Lanka.

Kataragama, a town in the southeast of Sri Lanka, is probably the most important centre for pilgrimage on the island. Based around a shrine to the god of the same name, this small jungle site is now a
bustling town. It is unique in that there is also a Buddhist temple and a mosque. The main festival time is July or August when pilgrims from across the country, of all denominations, flock to the town for
the big festival. It culminates with firewalking at night and a `water-cutting' ceremony in the Menik Ganga River on the last day.

For many years I have been photographing the way we wrap cloth around our bodies in Asia. A sari, a sarong, a shawl, a versti… Frequently the pictures are details – one series shows only torsos. This is the torso of a man on pilgrimage in classic red and white, the colours for homage at the shrine to Kataragama. Beautiful in its simplicity and great style.

Dominic Sansoni, Sri Lanka

Want to get your portfolio critiqued? How about a seminar over two days that will do that and also include workshops to improve your location lighting, Photoshop techniques or negotiation skills? Do you want to know what it takes to figure out the cost of doing business in the photography industry, or, are you grappling ethical issues in your newsroom?

The Northern Short Course in Photojournalism is a great place to network among your peers and hone your photography skills. Check out the site for information about a photo contest as well. The dates: March 11-13, 2004. The place: Crowne Plaza in Warwick, Rhode Island.

A couple of years back I visited London. Before my trip, I pestered Shahidul Alam for names of photographers, photo editor and photo agencies. People he knew well and whom I could meet to show off my own portfolio. On the top of his list was Kalpesh Lathigra.

I called. We talked. He was busy. But, we could meet. For a bit. At lunch time. Perfect!

Lathigra, is a London-based photojournalist. His images are full of energy. They are emotionally charged and have the sense of intimacy that many photographers simply lack. His web site displays a large breadth of work that also belies his age.