Saturday, October 6, 2018

Capturing the colours of Navaratri on the streets of Mylapore

Purnima.Sah@timesgroup.com

Mylapore, with its myriad offerings, is at its most buzzing form this time of the year. From temple-hopping, followed by savouring the delicious local delicacies; shopping at the quaint stalls and boutiques for attractive deals on silk saris, or thronging the second-hand bookstores; Mylapore keeps one pleasantly occupied. But have you ever stopped by to just observe and admire the beautiful colourful heritage of the streets of Mylapore? Recently, a group of photography enthusiasts from different walks of life gathered at the Kapaleeswarar Temple to participate in a photo walk titled, Colours of Navaratri, which was organised as part of the The Times of India’s ‘Namma Chennai Chance-ey Illa’ campaign, and led by Madras Photo Bloggers. The focus of the walk was to explore the little and the well-known nooks and crannies of the streets of Mylapore that look doubly cheerful now with the arrival of golu dolls before the beginning of the Navaratri week.

Before commencing the walk, budding photogs were given a masterclass by Srivatsan Sankaran, founder of Madras Photo Bloggers, who said it was important they first make their subject comfortable before getting click-happy. “Talk to the street vendors and the potter community who come from different parts of Tamil Nadu to sell golu dolls during Navaratri. That way, you can weave a beautiful story and tell others who aren’t aware of it.”

Mylapore, as seen through the lens
Among the many street vendors was 63-year-old Murugamma, who was waiting for customers to buy her bommais. But little did she know that she would become the favourite of many photographers. She even had her ‘celebrity moment’ when she posed and smiled for the photographers. She seemed extremely happy. “Madras is my home and it’s been three years since I started selling dolls during Navaratri. We’ve all sorts of dolls and depending upon the demand, we change the designs. The business is yet to pick up. Would you like to buy something from me,” Murugamma asks Vel Subramanian, who was one of the participants.

“I have been a part of Madras Photo Bloggers since the past six months. It’s been interesting to learn about the people here and how the street vendors work. They told me that for most of them, selling golu dolls during Navaratri is a temporary job. They invest a lot of money but in return, they earn very little,” said Vel, who is an IT professional.

Budding photographer Kala Shreethar, who joined the photo walk for the first time, was excited when she took pictures of children with colourful dolls as they posed for her. “Usually, when we come to Mylapore with our family, we don’t find time for this — this is such a fun and interactive thing to do. I am really thrilled.” Also part of the walk was Dr Gowrishanker R, who has been an avid photographer since the last ten years, but still calls himself a “beginner”. “I have never come to this part of Chennai to experience photography this way. We all buy golu dolls, but we have never seen the beauty of the streets of Mylapore this way before. The choice of location is really good and I am thoroughly enjoying it,” he said.

While many vendors source and sell locally made dolls, there are a few, like this one from the east, who gets the dolls down to Chennai all the way fromWest Bengal. His dolls stand out as they somewhat unconventional and quite appealing. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that they evoke the feel of Durga Pujo. There are dolls of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu along with Hindu deities like Durga, Radha-Krishna, and Kali, jostling for attention among dolls of farmers, temple priests doing hawan, and popular cartoon characters like Chota Bheem. “We have been selling dolls for the last 12 years. We source them all from Kolkata,” says Alagu P, who has no time to stand and talk as his stall is quite crowded.

Kruthika VM, a research scholar and photographer by hobby, feels that street photography is challenging. “Nature photography is easier. It was really difficult to make people pose with the dolls because as you know, Mylapore is a busy place and it has been a challenging and new experience for me.”

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