Native Picture

19/09/2024

Fishermen of Pondicherry.

12/09/2023

Rice mandi (market), Panipat, Haryana. Nov 2020.

06/09/2023

Happy child, Koppal, Karnataka, 2013

03/08/2023

Mother of a deceased son.
A village near Belgaum, Karnataka.

15/07/2023

"With their limited understanding of climate change, the people who are seriously affected in their everyday lives have learned to adapt autonomously to the combined effects of social, economic, and technological transformations due to climate change.

We present to you a photo essay based in Kozhikode in Kerala (which supplements our extensive ethnographic research study in the region), capturing moments and dynamics from people's everyday experience of inequality and adaptation to climate change on the coast, the plains, and the hills."

29/06/2023

Between 2008 and 2010, I travelled quite a bit to coastal Karnataka, photographing the cultural aspects of the region, speaking with people, watching nightlong performances, and researching at the folk centre located on the MGM College campus in Udupi. It was fascinating.
 
For me then, it was theatre, a fascinating form of drama with dance, costumes, and torches. Over time, I met and spoke with people who had done deep research into Bhoota Kola, walking deep into the forests, even before people used bulbs and tube lights for the performances. Dr. K. Chinnappa Gowda is one such person. Bhoota Kola has many aspects: religious, political, social, and judicial. Dr. Gowda and I spoke at length about what aspects of Bhoota worship we could highlight in an article. The film Kantara has focused on land rights, access to forest land, and protecting the commons. The film certainly did make Bhoota worship popular. But the form itself has deeper connotations for our society.
 
Though some consider Bhoota worship not as a theatre form but as entertainment, it is a composite system. It has functioned as an instrument for establishing a critical balance with the social, political, and judicial systems of Tulunaadu. The dynamics of the social and political systems of Tulunaadu are reflected in the dynamics of Bhoota worship. The changes in the details of Bhoota worship and the materials used therein have always responded to social compulsions. It is an ever-evolving art form that reflects our present-day society.

Story on link in bio

05/06/2023

This series of podcasts At Odds brings out aspects of the experience of inequality in India in terms of what it does to the economy, society, and politics. Based on continuing research at the Inequality and Human Development Programme (IHDP) at the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS) in Bangalore, treats inequality as a lens through which we can capture otherwise hidden elements of Indian reality.

In this podcast, Prof Narendar Pani and Dr Anant Kamath talk about inequality in contemporary India, exchanging thoughts, evidence, insights, and debates, over why inequality matters, what it does, how it is viewed, and how it is experienced. Their conversation journeys through issues on inequality in everyday life, its impact on economy and society, and reflections on how inequalities become aspirations in India today. In this process, they touch upon farmer suicides, migration, the left-behind, climate, conflict, technology, and gender; and inspect what inequality sounds like in our political conversations and whether inequality is linked to culture. Finally, they contemplate on what is to be done about this.

Produced by Native Picture in partnership with the National Institute of Advanced Studies (NIAS). Link in bio

22/03/2023

For centuries, the waters from the tanks have breathed life into the ecosystems that sustain rural indigenous communities, and the Neeruganti have been tending to this life force. Under their care, these lakes sustained the lives of all those connected to them.

As Venkatappa says, “If there is no control by the Neeruganti, there will be no water in the tank and no crop for the farmers.” While the cascading system of tanks are known as the lifeline of this region, the Neeruganti are its life force.

On World Water Day we get to understand the Generations of Water Wisdom, a film we made in collaboration with

Link in bio

03/03/2023

In a little village along the coast of Kerala I sit with Shekar, a 40 year old migrant fisherman. Our chat was across topics on fisheries and the sea, from different tastes of fish to climate change to the politics of fishing. It was an interesting chat. Every year he travels with his folk from Kanyakumari to the waters bordering Pakistan in Gujarat, his knowledge of coastal geography is unbelievable.

26/11/2022

And Adivasi woman in the Eastern Ghats curious to know what we were shooting.
Follow us on for stories on indigenous communities and their knowledge systems on biodiversity.

25/09/2022

Basant Kumar Jadav, a contractor who gets contracts from the government which according to him are small, ₹10-₹20 lakhs. Gharwatanr Baludih, Jharkhand.

18/02/2022

With rapid industrialisation and its promises of better regional growth, inclusion and economic upliftment, it becomes unimaginable to fathom its harrowing side effects.Here is the story of Khushilal Mahto of Kusumdih Kalyanpur, Ramgarh district, Jharkhand .

By Shambhavi Suman. “When we go to them seeking employment, we are shooed away on the pretext of no vacancy, or that we would be hired when there’s labour