My first view of Ramji was from a boat on the Ganges River in the Old City of Varanasi in North India 1988. At that time he was just another unknown person drying off after bathing in the Ganges.
In 1991
I returned back to India to do a 3month project on the Boatmen of Varanasi.I saw Ramji almost every morning at one of the Tea shops near the river.
He was interested in why I was staying in Varanasi and what was I photographing.
I was interested in how he saw the world and how he was living his life, so a friendship of sorts was formed.
Nearing the end of my time in India Ramji asked me if I would take his portrait and this began the start of the Photographic series on Ramji.
I caught up with Ramji again in 1992 and again in 1995
At this time he was living hard on the streets, not well and was smoking too much Hashish.
I caught up with Ramji again in 1997,He was still living on the streets but had cleaned himself up, no longer taking drugs, etc.
Six months beforehand two cows were fighting in the streets and one of them hit Ramji. He was taken to Hospital and suffered a broken leg, which ended up not being set properly, Ramji was in a lot of pain and now needed a stick for support.
I continued going back to Varanasi in 2002, 2006 and 2008, I was never sure that he was still alive, there was no internet, telephone or postal box for a street person.. Amazingly Ramji was there as always living somewhere close to the river. His health was generally good other tha n the leg which gave him regular pain.
On all those visits to Varanasi we would always make a point of taking a journey to the village that his mother lived in. Ramji never stayed there, he was just another mouth to feed in a very poor family that never had any extra.
In 2010 I returned again to Varanasi , this time there was no Ramji.
After three days of searching in all his regular areas, I finally tracked down his Brother who told me Ramji had died approx. 6 months before of pneumonia.
Ramji was 55years old when he passed away, he was a good man and greatly missed.
Munna Lal, Boatman of Varanasi
I first met Munna Lal in November 1988 in the city of Varanasi in North India. I photographed him from 1988 - 1999.
Munna Lal passed away shortly after the last portrait taken in 1999
Boatmen of Varanasi
I first visited Varanasi in 1987, this was the beginning of my long term project on the city, these two images are from my first impressions of the life of the river
Old City Varanasi 2010
The Streets of Varanasi, India
Delhi
I love coming back to Delhi
Wrestlers, Varanasi
Wrestlers Gym, Rajaa Ghat Varanasi
The Kashi-Express
The Kashi-Express travels daily from New Delhi to Varanasi.
Varanasi
I have been photographing the old city of Varanasi for 23 years, here are a few images and over the next 12months will show more from this series.
Circus Poster, Pushkar
I was in Pushkar many years ago and loved the circus paintings, this was my favourite
Dehra Dun 2010
I was in Haridwar for the Kumbh Mela Festival in March 2010. I have included two more images from Haridwar plus two more from a day trip to the Kargyupa Monastery in Dehra Dun.
Murari Baba..Varanasi 2010
I met Murari many years back when I was doing a series on one of the boatmen in Varanasi. The first picture was taken in 1997 and the most recent one in March 2010.
Murari is 53 years old and lives in Harischandra Ghat, Varanasi.
holi festival 2008
Going back a couple of years to the Holi festival in Varanasi, I photographed this all on Film using a underwater camera to combat the paint being thrown at me.
Haridwar 2010
I went to the Kumbh Mela festival in Haridwar, India 2010, here are some more images from that journey
India 2010
I have been travelling to India since 1987.
I returned back to India in March 2010 to revisit my long term project in Varanasi as well as heading to Haridwar to photograph the Kumbh Mela, here are some images from the trip.
Birds of India
Currumbin
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