Category Archives: China



Disposable camera, indisposable memories

Capturing a photo on film evokes this strange feeling in me: a slice of time being arrested; the moment physically is frozen; to be stowed away; to never be lost, but to be forgotten; forever left in dust-filled boxes, in cobweb filled attics, only to let me reminiscence into the past when re-discovered decades later in future.

I have to admit that my expectation of this feeling, of using a disposable camera to be similar to that of traditional film camera – was misinformed. The idea that the very device used to capture these moments, will be lifeless and pretty much useless after doing so; made me feel the added dimension of ephemeralness to the format. I have neither expected nor anticipated this, and it has left me gasping to slow down.

With digital cameras I usually take anywhere between few hundreds to few thousands of pictures in an year. On film, a hundred pictures or so. But with a disposable camera, I managed to take a mere 30 shots in an entire year; of those 5 were a lost, forever; leaving me wondering, what was in it? where was I? what was I thinking?; questions, which perhaps, I will never get the answers for.

Here are some of my favourite moments in the “forever format”

Snow in Amsterdam

Home, Amsterdam

Shanghai, China

Airports

Lisbon, Portugal

Algarve, Portugal

Texel Island, Netherlands

People watching

Cafes are one place where unexplainably  I experience quietness amidst a barrage of sounds and ambient noises, of waves of people going in and out; of conversations in groups or on phone; of the sounds of whizzing steam and brewing coffee. As my mind goes wandering and my heart starts contemplating, am lost in the solitude and reduced to a mere drop in an ocean of strangers, I love watching people.

For each stranger I glimpse at, am left cluelessly wondering – what is happening in their lives? Are they having a good day? what are they feeling? what is their life like? questions that will forever remain a mystery; questions that I always forget the moment they walk past.

IMG_7764_7766
IMG_7765
IMG_7767
IMG_7768

Bits of Shanghai

Its one city where crowd moves fast and internet goes slow; For a foreigner time goes fast and life is hard. Three weeks in Shanghai so far here and it has been every bit difficult as I had imagined and even more exciting than I had ever hoped, for I had expected less. I have waited for months to move here and strange turn of events now make me yearn to move back.

20160130-IMG_1126
20160130-IMG_1132_1142
20160130-IMG_1158_1164
20160130-IMG_1172_1128
20160130-IMG_1178
20160130-IMG_1182
20160130-IMG_1183
20160130-IMG_1201
20160130-IMG_1203
20160130-IMG_1204
20160130-IMG_1120